NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- A single strain of salmonella has
infected 388 people in 42 states since last fall but the cause is still unknown,
U.S. medical officials said Thursday.
Most patients have become ill since mid-October, Lola Russell, a spokeswoman for
the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, said. She
said the outbreak was still growing and DNA testing implicates a common strain
known as salmonella typhimurium, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The typhimurium strain is commonly found in poultry, produce, raw milk, cheese,
or spread through contacts with animals such as small turtles, Russell said.
Salmonella, a major food safely problem in recent years, is a feces-borne
bacterium that can cause diarrhea, fever and severe cramps.
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