title: An outbreak of salmonellosis associated with duck prosciutto at a Northern Territory restaurant.
abstract: In June 2015, an outbreak of salmonellosis occurred among people who had eaten at a restaurant in Darwin, Northern Territory over 2 consecutive nights. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of diners who ate at the restaurant on 19 and 20 June 2015. Diners were telephoned and a questionnaire recorded symptoms and menu items consumed. An outbreak case was defined as anyone with laboratory confirmed Salmonella Typhimurium PT9 (STm9) or a clinically compatible illness after eating at the restaurant. Environmental health officers inspected the premises and collected food samples. We contacted 79/83 of the cohort (response rate 95%); 21 were cases (attack rate 27%), and 9 had laboratory confirmed STm9 infection. The most commonly reported symptoms were diarrhoea (100%), abdominal pain (95%), fever (95%) and nausea (95%). Fifteen people sought medical attention and 7 presented to hospital. The outbreak was most likely caused by consumption of duck prosciutto, which was consumed by all cases (OR 18.6, CI 3.0-∞, P < 0.01) and was prepared on site. Salmonella was not detected in any food samples but a standard plate count of 2 x 107colony forming units per gram on samples of duck prosciutto demonstrated bacterial contamination. The restaurant used inappropriate methodology for curing the duck prosciutto. Restaurants should consider purchasing pre-made cured meats, or if preparing them on site, ensure that they adhere to safe methods of production.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Disease Control, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.|National School of Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.|OzFoodNet, Australian Government Department of Health, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.
authors.forename: Anthony Dk
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Draper
authors.affiliation: Environmental Health Branch, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Claire N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Morton
authors.affiliation: Environmental Health Branch, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Joshua Ni
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Heath
authors.affiliation: Environmental Health Branch, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Justin A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Environmental Health Branch, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Anninka I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Schiek
authors.affiliation: National School of Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.affiliation: Centre for Disease Control, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Vicki L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Krause
authors.affiliation: Centre for Disease Control, Northern Territory Government Department of Health, Darwin, Northern Territory.
authors.forename: Peter G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Markey
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004372:Ducks; D005260:Female; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015876:Northern Territory / Q000453:epidemiology; D012147:Restaurants; D012478:Salmonella Food Poisoning / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D012480:Salmonella Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*