Two more hospital patients die in a listeriosis outbreak

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Two other in-patient deaths have been linked to a listeriosis outbreak in pre-packaged sandwiches and salads.

The announcement made Friday by Public Health England (PHE) brings from six to nine the number of confirmed cases and from three to five the number of deaths.

Last week, PHE confirmed that two patients from the Manchester Royal Infirmary and another patient from Aintree Hospital had died.

All cases were found in hospitalized patients in England.

All but one death occurred more than a month ago, PHE said.

The Good Food Chain's sandwiches and salads related to the outbreak were removed and production halted.

The chain – which provided 43 NHS trusts in the UK – was stocked with meat produced by North Country Cooked Meats, which then tested positive for the epidemic strain of listeria.

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PHE said they have been analyzing known cases of listeriosis in the last two months to determine if they were related.

"To date, no patient has been involved in this incident outside of health care organizations, but we are continuing our research," said Dr. Nick Phin of Public Health England.

"Quick steps have been taken to protect patients and any risk to the public is low."

He added: "PHE continues to analyze all recent and ongoing listeria samples from inpatients to understand if their disease is related to this outbreak."

A listeria infection can cause mild discomfort, but is more likely to seriously affect pregnant women, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems.

In a statement, the good food chain said to cooperate "fully and seamlessly with the Food Standards Agency and other authorities" and said that she hoped the investigation would be continued in a manner " urgent so that the entire industry can learn lessons as soon as possible. " possible".

"Our thoughts and deepest sympathies go to the families of those who have died and to whoever has been touched by this epidemic.

"The underlying cause of it remains uncertain," the statement added.

The Manchester University NHS Foundation has stated that the new cases do not concern them.

What is listeria?

Listeria is a bacterium that can cause a type of food poisoning called listeriosis.

Normally, the symptoms are mild – high temperature, chills, nausea – and disappear after a few days.

But in this epidemic, cases occurred in people who were already seriously ill hospitalized and who were at greatest risk of serious infection.

Listeriosis can damage organs, spread to the brain or blood, and be fatal.

In 2017, the numbers show that there were 33 deaths related to listeriosis in England and Wales.

Many types of food can be contaminated with listeria, such as soft cheeses, refrigerated ready-to-eat foods, such as pre-packaged salads, sandwiches and slices of meat, as well as other products. based on unpasteurized milk.

For this reason, it is advisable for pregnant women to avoid soft cheese.

To reduce risk, the NHS recommends that people keep refrigerated foods in the refrigerator, warm them up until they are very hot, and not eat foods after their expiration date.