Health Law

Penn State E. coli Case: is it an outbreak?

By Drew Falkenstein

  Nathan Pipenberg of the Daily Collegian today reported on an apparent case of E. coli O157:H7 infection that may be linked to food served on campus during a tennis camp at Penn State University. 

An East Halls tennis camper left University Park early last week -- then told Penn State this week his doctor had informed him he had contracted E. coli, a serious form of food poisoning.

Penn State spokeswoman Lisa Powers said Penn State officials couldn't confirm that the camper contracted the illness while at Penn State. University officials will meet this afternoon to discuss the situation, she said.

There was an indication that a few other campers reported digestive system problems, Powers said, but none of them reported having E. coli.

Findlay Commons provides food for all participants at Penn State sports camps.

"It would be really unusual because we have so many university food health protocols in place," Powers said.

It would be the first case of food poisoning at Penn State in 31 years, she said.

Read tomorrow's issue of The Daily Collegian for more details.
 

Mr. Pipenberg nicely highlights the fact that "a few other campers reported digestive system problems."  This is obviously a critical epidemiological detail that may mean that there really is a problem at PSU--i.e. that the confirmed case of E. coli from the tennis camper is not isolated. 

Full post as published by Food Poison Blog on July 07, 2010 (boomark / email).