Quote:
Wikipedia posted:
A novel strain of Escherichia coli O104:H4 bacteria caused a serious outbreak of foodborne illness focused in northern Germany in May through June 2011. The illness was characterized by bloody diarrhea, with a high frequency of serious complications, including hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), a condition that requires urgent treatment.
[...]
In addition to Germany, where 3,785 cases and 45 deaths had been reported as of 27 July,[7] a handful of cases were reported in several countries including Switzerland,[7] Poland,[7] the Netherlands,[7] Sweden,[7] Denmark,[7] the UK,[7][8] Canada[9] and the USA.[10][9]
[...]
But on June 10 it was confirmed by the head of the Robert Koch Institute that the bean sprouts are the source of the outbreak, and that people who ate the bean sprouts were nine times more likely to have bloody diarrhea.[46][47] The WHO have confirmed on June 10 this statement on the update 13 of the EHEC outbreak.[48]
According to the head of the national E. coli lab at the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, the strain responsible for the outbreak has been circulating in Germany for 10 years, and in humans not cattle.
