CDPH: California not part of explosive diarrhea outbreak seen elsewhere in the U.S.

You’ve probably been hearing about outbreaks of ‘explosive diarrhea’ popping up across the U.S. There’s a lot of chatter and concern over it but there are also ways to protect yourself.

Let’s start with the good news: the California Department of Public Health says California is not one of the states currently experiencing an increase in cases of cyclosporiasis. That’s an intestinal illness caused by the microscopic Cyclospora parasite.

In fact, according to the CDPH, California has only seen 41 cases statewide so far this year. That’s down by half from this time last year.

Still—there are ways to keep ourselves safe, says Dr. Dean Blumberg. He’s professor and chief of pediatric infectious diseases at UC Davis Health.

“People who have cyclospora infection have gastrointestinal illness, and that’s primarily manifested through diarrhea – watery diarrhea that can be explosive – and this is associated with other symptoms such as nausea, bloating, and cramps,” Blumberg said. “It usually is not associated with fever or vomiting, and that differentiates it from other causes of gastrointestinal illness.”

While uncomfortable, he says, the illness is not usually life-threatening and is treated with antibiotics.

Unlike other gastrointestinal illnesses – such as e. coli infection or food poisoning, he said – cyclosporiasis takes awhile for symptoms to develop.

“The average time between getting exposed to the organism and then having symptoms is about 1 week, but it can be up to 2 weeks,” Blumberg said.

That’s a big reason why health officials elsewhere in the U.S., where cyclosporiasis is spreading, are having trouble pinpointing the exact source of contamination, Blumberg said.

“When you’re investigating an outbreak, what you would do is you would interview people and say, ‘Tell me what you ate the week or two before you first had symptoms.’ Many people can’t remember specifically what they ate,” Blumberg said. “And even if they do remember, [we need to] to go back and try to test those foods – if they’re fresh foods, they may not be available.”

He said cyclosporiasis is generally not spread person-to-person, but “spread via contaminated food.”

Nationwide, the CDC has confirmed more than 1,600 cases across more than 30 states since the start of May and is aware of more than 5,000 additional cases that await further analysis.

Specifically, the CDC is identifying a multi-state outbreak linked to Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky.

In Michigan, public health officials say early information points to lettuce or salad greens as a possible culprit.

On Tuesday, the Taco Bell restaurant chain issued a statement saying it had “voluntarily and temporarily removed limited ingredients at select restaurants as a precautionary measure” and will “continue to closely monitor the situation and follow the guidance of public health authorities.”

“If [public health officials] can identify exactly what’s causing this and exactly what products and then recall those, then I think we’d have a lot more confidence,” Blumberg said.

He added that fresh fruits and vegetables are part of a healthy diet, and since there’s not an outbreak in California, he still recommends people eat them. But it’s always good to take precautions.

“Washing fresh fruits and vegetables under cold running water is appropriate. It may not totally eliminate any contamination, but it reduces the contamination, and that reduces risk of infection,” Blumberg said.

Blumberg said cooking produce to a temperature of at least 158 degrees makes it safe to eat, too.

“Other common sources of infection in past outbreaks have included parsley, cilantro and basil. If people want to avoid those for now, that would be fine because you can still have a healthy diet without those,” Blumberg said.

Raspberries have also been part of past outbreaks. ABC10 asked Dr. Blumberg what approach he’s taking, given the evidence.

“I’m still eating fresh fruits and vegetables. I like salad. I think raspberries are great,” Blumberg said. “So, I would still eat those, and I am still eating those at the present time.”

People with mild cases can usually just manage symptoms at home, Blumberg said, and the body’s immune system will eventually kill off the cyclospora. But if symptoms are lasting more than 3-4 days and it’s interrupting your life, that’s a good time to go to your primary doctor, he said.

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