A community--wide outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium infection associated with eating a raw milk soft cheese in France.
In 1997, a community-wide outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium (S. typhimurium) infection occurred in France. The investigation included case searching and a case-control study. A case was defined as a resident of the Jura district with fever or diarrhoea between 12 May and 8 July 1997, from whom S. typhimurium was isolated in stool or blood. One hundred and thirteen cases were identified. Thirty-three (83 %) of 40 cases but only 23 (55 %) of 42 community controls, matched for age and area of residence, reported eating Morbier cheese (Odds ratio: 6.5; 95 % Confidence Interval: 1.4-28.8). Morbier cheese samples taken from the refrigerators of two case-patients and one symptom-free neighbour cultured positive for S. typhimurium of the same phage type as the human isolates. The analysis of distribution channels incriminated one batch from a single processing plant. These findings show that an unpasteurized soft cheese is an effective vehicle of S. typhimurium transmission.
De Valk
H
H
Institut de Veille Sanitaire, Saint-Maurice, France.
Delarocque-Astagneau
E
E
Colomb
G
G
Ple
S
S
Godard
E
E
Vaillant
V
V
Haeghebaert
S
S
Bouvet
P H
PH
Grimont
F
F
Grimont
P
P
Desenclos
J C
JC
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002611:Cheese / Q000382:microbiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008892:Milk / Q000382:microbiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012478:Salmonella Food Poisoning / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control