Salmonella Linked to Ground Beef Leaves 8 Hospitalized, 1 Dead

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Ten people in six states have become infected with Salmonella Dublin after eating ground beef, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Friday.

So far, there’s no information on the producer or supplier of the beef or the stores where it was sold. The agency said it will issue updates when it has more information.

The salmonella cases occurred in California (two), Colorado (three), Iowa (one), Kansas (two), Oklahoma (one), and Texas (one). Illnesses in this outbreak are more severe than expected for salmonella, the CDC said.

The hospitalization rate for salmonella poisoning is typically 20 percent, but in this outbreak, eight of the 10 victims had to be hospitalized, and one person died.

Salmonella Dublin isn’t as common as other strains of salmonella, but it is particularly worrisome. According to the CDC: “People with Salmonella Dublin infections have longer hospital stays, more bloodstream infections, and are more likely to die than people infected with other kinds of salmonella.” This bacteria is often resistant to antibiotics, making infections difficult to treat.

However, the CDC is not currently recommending that stores stop selling ground beef or that consumers stop eating it. Handling ground beef carefully and thoroughly cooking it to an internal temperature of 160° F can help prevent food poisoning, the agency said.

But CR experts say consumers at risk for severe food poisoning—the elderly, the very young, people with diseases that compromise the immune system, or pregnant women—should be cautious when eating beef. “So far, only a few people in a few states have gotten ill, but the bacteria appears to be virulent,” says James E. Rogers, Ph.D., director of food safety and testing at Consumer Reports.

“I’d suggest vulnerable people who live in the affected states avoid eating ground beef until we have more information,” Rogers says. “And if you do choose to eat it, be scrupulous about washing your hands and kitchen utensils after handling raw meat and using a food thermometer to make sure the beef is cooked to 160° F.”

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