DDC Home
Bureau of Epidemiology
Epidemiology and Surveillance
Health Information
Publications
Training and Quality Improvement
Quick Links
|
Recent Increase in Shigellosis in Florida, 2010
The Bureau of Epidemiology has identified a recent increase
in reported cases of shigellosis. Shigellosis is an infection that causes
diarrhea. It is usually a mild, self-resolving illness (meaning the body will
fight off the infection without treatment), and most people recover completely
within 4 to 7 days. After a person is infected, symptoms may develop within 1 to
3 days and include diarrhea, fever, nausea, and/or vomiting. Some people never
develop any symptoms after being infected.
Shigellosis is very contagious and can spread easily from
person to person. The disease is caused by a group of bacteria called
Shigella. The infection is acquired by swallowing something contaminated
with the feces of an infected person. This most commonly happens when an
infected person does not wash his/her hands properly after a bowel movement, and
then touches somebody else's hands or prepares food for others. Even persons
without symptoms can carry the bacteria and pass it on to others.
Shigellosis generally has a cyclic temporal pattern
characterized by large community outbreaks, frequently associated with child
care settings. In the last decade, Florida has experienced large peaks in
2002/2003 and 2006/2007. The recent increase in reported shigellosis cases may indicate that we are entering another period of
increased activity in Florida.
Click
here* for recent data.
* text equivalent data can be requested by contacting the Bureau of Epidemiology
at (850) 245-4401
Implementing prevention measures proactively may decrease the
transmission of shigellosis and mitigate potential community outbreaks.
Prevention measures
for shigellosis:
-
Hand washing is to be done after
bathroom visits, diaper changes, play time, and handling of pets or soil and
before food preparation and eating. Wash hands for at least 20 seconds and
use soap and running water to lather and rinse the palms, backs of hands,
between fingers, under fingernails, and around wrists.
-
Hand washing among children
should be frequent and supervised by an adult in child care facilities and
homes with children who have not been fully toilet trained.
-
Everyone who
changes any child's diapers should be sure the diapers are disposed of
properly in a closed-lid garbage can, and should wash his or her hands and
the child's hands carefully with soap and warm water immediately after
changing the diapers. This is particularly important when the child has
diarrhea.
-
Clean and disinfect bathrooms,
diaper changing areas, and soiled toys on a routine basis.
-
People
with diarrhea should not prepare food or drinks for others.
-
Practice
basic food and water
safety precautions.
-
Clean: wash
hands often and clean kitchen utensils, plates, cutting boards, and counter
surfaces during and after food preparation.
-
Cook: cook meat
and eggs thoroughly.
-
Wash: raw
fruits and vegetables.
-
Chill: refrigerate promptly.
-
Separate: don't
cross contaminate.
-
Drink only safe
water supplies, or boil water.
-
Simple
precautions taken while
traveling to the developing world can prevent enteric diseases.
-
Drink only treated or boiled
water.
-
Eat only cooked hot
foods or fruits you peel yourself.
-
Prevention
measures specific
to child care facilities.
-
Child
care facilities should keep the
food preparation area separate from the diapering area, diaper-changers should
not prepare foods, and water for formula or juices should not come from the
bathroom or hand washing faucet.
-
Child care facilities
should not provide water play areas.
-
Sick
children should be excluded from
child care facilities.
-
Sick staff should stay home
until their illness has cleared.
For additional
information on shigellosis, please see the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
website
Recommendations for
county health departments:
Below are steps that your county
health department (CHD) can take now to help prevent cases and facilitate early
reporting of outbreaks from child care facilities (including summer camps).
-
Contact your county's
Environmental Health Unit and encourage them to look for evidence of
gastrointestinal illness outbreaks when inspecting child care facilities.
-
Coordinate with your county's
Environmental Health Unit to send a notice to child care facilities to
inform them of the increased shigellosis activity and advise them on
prevention measures and steps to be taken in the event of an outbreak,
including early reporting of cases to the CHD (see
sample letter to child
care facilities).
-
Send a notice to healthcare
providers in your county to inform them of the increased shigellosis
activity and remind them of reporting requirements. Remind healthcare
providers that antibiotic resistance patterns change over time and
geography. Community-specific antibiograms are useful in determining
treatment.
-
Review additional information on
recommendations and
Guidelines for Control of Outbreaks of Enteric Disease
in Child Care Settings
Additional
resources for county health departments:
|
