title: Clostridium perfringens foodborne outbreak due to braised chop suey supplied by chafing dish.
abstract: On February 13, 2002, a public health center in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, was notified that many individuals living at the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force base had symptoms resembling those of food poisoning. Self-administered questionnaires requesting information regarding meal consumption and symptoms were distributed to all 281 members at the base. A case of the illness was defined as a member who had had watery or mucousy stool, or loose stool with abdominal cramps, more than twice a day after consuming dinner on February 12. Control of the illness was defined as a member with no symptoms. The dinner on February 12 was significantly associated with the illness (Mantel-Haenszel odds ratio: 3.59, 95% confidence interval: 1.06-12.20). A case-control study showed that, among the food supplied at dinner on February 12, the braised chop suey was significantly associated with the illness (odds ratio: 12.30, 95% confidence interval: 1.90-521.00). The braised chop suey had been stored in a chafing dish. An environmental investigation indicated that Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) in the chafing dish proliferated under an inappropriate heat-retention temperature, and the contaminated braised chop suey could have caused the food poisoning. This study demonstrated that the recommended heat-retention temperature (over 65 degrees C) should be confirmed thoroughly.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine and Dentistry, Okayama 700-8558, Japan. h-ochiai@md.okayama-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Hirotaka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ochiai
authors.forename: Tadahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohtsu
authors.forename: Toshihide
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tsuda
authors.forename: Haruko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kagawa
authors.forename: Toshiaki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawashita
authors.forename: Soshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takao
authors.forename: Akizumi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsutsumi
authors.forename: Norito
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kawakami
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003015:Clostridium Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003016:Clostridium perfringens / Q000254:growth & development; D003297:Cooking and Eating Utensils; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005517:Foodborne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel; D013696:Temperature