Brucellosis linked to unpasteurized camel milk in Israel

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Two patients have been hospitalized at Meir Medical and another patient at Schneider Hospital in Petach Tikvah, suffering from brucellosis linked to the consumption of unpasteurized camel milk produced by the dairy company “Genesis.”

Last week, two children were hospitalized for mild to moderate condition at Ichilov Hospital, following a drinking camel’s milk marketed by the company. Following the admission office ordered destroyed four tons of camel milk.

Amir Shreibman (64) and his wife, Kfar Sava have suffered in recent weeks from a high fever. “Four months ago we started to drink camel’s milk of Genesis, after we were convinced that it had medicinal properties,” he said. “They told us that many people drink this milk, and everything was fine. We did not think anything would happen to us, even if unpasteurized milk.”

Brucellosis linked to raw milk cheese, coupled with Lyme disease, leaves woman bedridden

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Reve Fisher of Opposing Views writes a vacation in Greece may have been the factor that left an English woman in debilitating pain.

While in Kos, Greece, with her family in 2013, Sam Philpott ate a “significant amount” of unpasteurized goat cheese in sandwiches, on pizzas, and as part of salads.

A few weeks later, she experienced a number of troubling symptoms, such as constant vomiting and nausea, migraines, intense weakness, fevers, exhaustion, and horrific pain. Three years later, she is barely able to walk.

“Who knew that [unpasteurized] cheese; that is delicious and has brought me much momentary happiness, could cause the mind numbing and wanting to end my life type of pain that I have been suffering with,” she said, as reported by The Mirror. “With each mouthful, to my unfortunate complete lack of knowledge and utter surprise, I was ingesting the bacteria that has led to my being bedridden.”

Sam is receiving intravenous therapy treatment at Sponaugle Wellness Institute in Oldsmar, Florida, a facility with an “incredible” success rate for treating patients with Lyme disease, as said on the family’s Go Fund Me page.

However, it is recommended that patients with Lyme disease be diagnosed within six months for the clinic’s regular treatment to be effective. The 22-year-old has been struggling with health ailments for six years.

In 2010, she was bitten by a tick while in Weimar, California, and developed intense joint pain, nausea, anxiety, depression, and poor concentration afterwards. By 2012, she needed a walking frame. Her 51-year-old mother became her full-time caregiver.

“At the clinic, they have said she is one of the worst patients they have seen, in terms of how far her illness has progressed,” said Joe Philpott, Sam’s 24-year-old brother. “It’s a kick in the teeth, but she has faith they’ll be able to help. She just wants to go back to studying and get her life back.”

Sam is receiving medication for both Brucellosis and Lyme disease, as her symptoms match both conditions.

“Doctors believe that she more than likely contracted brucellosis the summer she was in Kos – so they think it is linked to eating cheese,” Joe explained.

13 sick: Illegal cheese factory in Portugal leads to brucellosis outbreak

Posted on November 26, 2014 by Douglas Powell

An unauthorized cheese factory in the northern Portuguese town of Baiao, 370 km north of Lisbon, is the source of an outbreak of brucellosis in the area, which has so far led to 13 confirmed infections, according to local press reports on Tuesday.

Brucellosis, which is also known as Malta Fever, Rock Fever or Mediterranean Fever, is most often contracted from unpasteurized milk or milk products such as cheese. The disease leads to parasites in the host’s bloodstream and episodes may last weeks, months or even years. It causes potentially recurrent episodes of high fever, sweating and related anemia.

At least four of the victims of the outbreak have been hospitalized in the neighboring city of Porto, a spokesperson from the Northern Regional Health Administration told the Expresso newspaper.

Re-emergence of brucellosis in cattle in France and risk for human health via raw milk cheese

Posted on July 26, 2012 by Douglas Powell

In January 2012, a human case of brucellosis was diagnosed by blood culture in a district of the French Alps. The isolated strain was identified as Brucella melitensis biovar 3. Excerpts from the paper by Mailles et al. in the current issue of Eurosurveillance appear below.

In April 2012, brucellosis was confirmed in a dairy cow in a herd of the same district of the French Alps. The seropositive cow had aborted in late January, and a strain of Brucella melitensis biovar 3 was isolated from the milk sampled from the animal. The animal belonged to a herd 21 dairy cows, and no other animal in the herd presented with symptoms suggesting brucellosis or showed any serological reaction. Approximately 20 kg of Reblochon cheese (soft raw milk cheese) are usually produced daily on the affected farm.

France has been officially free of brucellosis in cattle since 2005, and the last outbreak of brucellosis in sheep and goats was reported in 2003. In order to detect and prevent any re-emergence of the disease, annual screening using Rose Bengale test or complement fixation test is carried out in all cattle, sheep and goat farms producing raw milk as well as in all cattle herds, and every one to three years in small ruminant, according to EU regulations. Moreover, abortion in ruminants is mandatorily notifiable and the investigation of abortion includes examination for brucellosis.

Reblochon cheese is a raw milk soft cheese, requiring a maturation period of three weeks to one month. The cheese from the affected farm had been commercialised after the abortion in seven districts. Cheese was sold directly at the farm, and as whole pieces or in parts in supermarkets. Cheese produced by the affected farm had not been exported to other countries but might have been bought by foreign tourists during their winter holidays in several ski resorts in the area. For this reason, the European rapid alert system for food and feed (RASFF) was informed.

After the identification of the first bovine case, the human case was interviewed again to investigate any direct or indirect epidemiological link with the infected herd. During the second interview, it became clear that the patient and their family had visited the infected farm in autumn 2011, although it was not possible to determine the exact date. During this visit, the family had bought Tome Blanche cheese, a fresh cheese obtained during the first step of Reblochon production. The four family members had shared the Tome Blanche on the same day, but the index case was the only one who later presented with symptoms.

All cheese pieces produced by the affected farm and still within the shelf life were withdrawn from retailers. In addition, a recall of already sold products was carried out via a national press release by the cheese producer and by posters in the sale points. Medical doctors in the concerned districts were informed by the regional health authorities. Consumers of these products were advised to seek medical attention should they present symptoms consistent with brucellosis.
The release of cheese from the affected farm was immediately stopped. The movements of animals from other herds that had epidemiological links with the infected herd (those that were geographically close to the infected herd, or had been bought from the infected herd) have been restricted until the end of the investigation. Furthermore, raw cheese products from farms with epidemiological links to the infected farm were put on sale only after negative bacteriological tests results had been obtained.

Public health types have better things to do; E. coli O157, brucellosis in raw milk

Posted on January 21, 2012 by Douglas Powell

On-going outbreaks and recalls in Washington State, the same E. coli O157:H7 scattered throughout a California dairy that sickened five children, and now a man who drank raw milk produced at a Western Massachusetts dairy farm is suspected of being infected with brucellosis, raising concerns about the emergence of a germ that has not been seen in New England livestock in at least two decades.

Brucellosis is an infectious disease passed primarily between animals, but it can be acquired by humans through the consumption of raw milk.

Officials from the state Department of Public Health said they are investigating Twin Rivers Farm in Ashley Falls as the possible source of the infection, because the infected man purchased raw milk there. The dairy sells raw milk only at the facility, not in retail stores, and officials urged anyone who bought raw milk there to discard it.

The owners of Twin Rivers Farm could not be reached for comment.

Dr. Alfred DeMaria, the state’s top disease tracker, said the man has believed to have consumed the milk in late December. But because the illness often starts with flu-like symptoms, it was difficult to pinpoint at first, adding, “It’s an astute physician that worked it out.”

A table of raw-milk related outbreaks is available at http://bites.ksu.edu/rawmilk.

Brucellosis and listeria cases linked to raw milk in Delaware

Posted on June 14, 2010 by Douglas Powell

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) has identified simultaneous cases of brucellosis in a 58 year old female New Castle County resident and listeriosis in a 44 year old male in Sussex County. These illnesses are both bacterial infections which primarily affect those consuming or coming into contact with contaminated animals or animal products, most commonly the consumption of raw food or dairy products. In both instances, these patients had consumed raw dairy products prior to becoming ill, and the individual with listeria had also been handling raw poultry products. No other risk factors have been identified.

The brucella case was hospitalized and discharged. The listeria case is still admitted but stable.

DPH statewide inspections of retail food establishments are in place to protect consumers from purchasing or consuming raw dairy products, but unlawful distribution may still occur.

Elk or Bison to blame for Montana’s loss of “Brucellosis free status”

Posted on January 17, 2009 by Michelle Mazur

On September 3rd, 2008, Montana lost its brucellosis-free status due to two cases of infected cattle. It was a big blow since last February the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared all 50 states to be free of brucellosis — the first time that had happened in 74 years.
Montana’s livestock producers will now be required to test bulls and nonspayed females, 18 months of age or older, 30 days before interstate shipment.

Ranchers in Montana and surrounding states are taking action to prevent any further spread of brucellosis. A brucellosis plan of action has been proposed by the Montana Department of Livestock, which includes surveillance, vaccination, traceability/animal identification, fencing/pasture management, and other measures to help the state regain its brucellosis free status. If no additional cases of brucellosis in livestock are found, the state will be able to apply for Class Free status to USDA APHIS in late May of 2009. Also, Montana needs to prove to USDA that no additional cases of brucellosis in cattle exist in the state.

Brucellosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria of the genus Brucella.
It is a devastating illness for herds as it causes cattle to spontaneously abort if pregnant. Humans become infected by coming in contact with animals or animal products that are contaminated with these bacteria. To prevent infection, herdsman should use rubber gloves when handling viscera of animal; all consumers should not have unpasteurized milk, cheese or ice cream.

Who’s to blame for the source of the brucellosis disease? Livestock officials point to wild elk and bison in the area, though there has been much discussion as to whether these are the true culprits. A four-foot high, seven-mile long electric fence has been erected near Gardiner to steer bison that migrate out of Yellowstone National Park to acceptable grazing land. In terms of sheer numbers, the Yellowstone region’s 25 elk herds dwarf the three herds of bison. And unlike bison, which move in groups, elk move freely over the region’s numerous mountain ranges, often alone or in small numbers. Livestock officials say infected elk herds around Yellowstone must be culled, but hunters are pushed back saying that efforts should focus on vaccinating cattle or eradicating the disease in bison.

There is also the probability that neither of these species are the ones responsible for the infected cattle. The fact that both the 2007 and the current brucellosis detections have occurred in Corriente cattle, a breed closely associated with brucellosis, has many questioning whether cattle, and not Yellowstone wildlife, are responsible for the transmissions resulting in Montana losing its brucellosis free status.

Government authorities continue to work with local officials toward regaining its status as a state free from brucellosis.

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