Multi-strain Salmonella Outbreak linked to backyard Chickens

CDC and public health officials in several states are collecting different types of data to investigate multistate outbreaks of Salmonella Altona, Cerro, Indiana, Infantis, Johannesburg, Mbandaka, and Typhimurium infections. Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback data show that contact with backyard poultry is making people sick.

As of June 20, 2024, 195 people infected with one of the outbreak strains of Salmonella have been reported from 38 states (see map). Illnesses started on dates ranging from February 18, 2024, to May 30, 2024 (see timeline). Of 136 people with information available, 50 (37%) have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.

Investigators in Minnesota, Ohio, and Utah collected samples from inside the boxes used to ship poultry from hatcheries to retail stores, including the box liner and bedding. WGS showed that the Salmonella Altona, Cerro, and Mbandaka found in these samples are the same strains as the ones found in sick people.

WGS analysis of bacteria from 176 people’s samples and 13 environmental samples had no predicted resistance; 14 people’s samples predicted resistance to one or more of the following antibiotics: amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, ampicillin, cefoxitin, ceftiofur, ceftriaxone, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, kanamycin, streptomycin, sulfisoxazole, and tetracycline. More information is available at the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) site. Most people with Salmonella illness recover without antibiotics. However, if antibiotics are needed, some illnesses in this outbreak may be difficult to treat with some commonly recommended antibiotics and may require a different antibiotic choice.

Chicken owner should do:

 Wash your hands

                  ◦               Always wash your hands with soap and water immediately after touching backyard poultry, their eggs, or anything in the area where they live and roam.

                  ◦               Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not readily available. Consider keeping hand sanitizer at your coop.

 Be safe around backyard flocks

                  ◦               Don’t kiss or snuggle backyard poultry, and don’t eat or drink around them. This can spread Salmonella germs to your mouth and make you sick.

                  ◦               Keep your backyard poultry and the supplies you use to care for them (like feed containers and shoes you wear in the coop) outside of the house. You should also clean the supplies outside the house.

Supervise kids around flocks

                  ◦               Always supervise children around backyard poultry and make sure they wash their hands properly afterward.

                  ◦               Don’t let children younger than 5 years touch chicks, ducklings, or other backyard poultry. Young children are more likely to get sick from germs like Salmonella.

Handle eggs safely

                  ◦               Collect eggs often. Eggs that sit in the nest can become dirty or break.

                  ◦               Throw away cracked eggs. Germs on the shell can more easily enter the egg through a cracked shell.

                  ◦               Rub off dirt on eggs with a brush, a cloth, or fine sandpaper. Don’t wash eggs because colder water can pull germs into the egg.

                  ◦               Refrigerate eggs to keep them fresh and slow the growth of germs.

                  ◦               Cook eggs until both the yolk and white are firm and cook egg dishes to an internal temperature of 160°F to kill all germs.

Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these severe symptoms:

                  •               Diarrhea and a fever higher than 102°F

                  •               Diarrhea for more than 3 days that is not improving

                  •               Bloody diarrhea

                  •               So much vomiting that you cannot keep liquids down

                  •               Signs of dehydration, such as:

                  ◦               Not peeing much

                  ◦               Dry mouth and throat

                  ◦               Feeling dizzy when standing up

Republished with permission from Bill Marler and Marler Clark. Copyright (c) Marler Clark LLP, PS. All rights reserved.