Western Kentucky salmonella outbreak rises to 15 cases
As of Friday, the salmonella outbreak in three counties in Western Kentucky has risen to 15 cases, according to a SurfKY.com report.
The report notes that the 15 “suspected” cases have been reported from Hopkins, Webster and Muhlenberg counties.
According to Gwenda Bond with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS), of the 15 suspected cases, eight have now been identified as having the same genetic fingerprint.
According to Denise Beach, director of the Hopkins County Health Department, the linked cases have been identified by the state CHFS as Type B Typhimurium.
Health officials say they have not pinpointed the source of the outbreak and the investigation is ongoing.
Salmonella is an organism, which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.
In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.
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