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. 2015 Nov;143(15):3227-34.
doi: 10.1017/S0950268815000497. Epub 2015 Apr 13.

Nationwide outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg infections associated with ground turkey: United States, 2011

J A Routh  1 , J Pringle  1 , M Mohr  2 , S Bidol  3 , K Arends  3 , M Adams-Cameron  4 , W T Hancock  1 , B Kissler  5 , R Rickert  6 , J Folster  6 , B Tolar  7 , S Bosch  1 , C Barton Behravesh  1 , I T Williams  1 , L Gieraltowski  1
Affiliations

Nationwide outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg infections associated with ground turkey: United States, 2011

J A Routh et al. Epidemiol Infect. 2015 Nov.

Abstract

On 23 May 2011, CDC identified a multistate cluster of Salmonella Heidelberg infections and two multidrug-resistant (MDR) isolates from ground turkey retail samples with indistinguishable pulsed-field gel electrophoresis patterns. We defined cases as isolation of outbreak strains in persons with illness onset between 27 February 2011 and 10 November 2011. Investigators collected hypothesis-generating questionnaires and shopper-card information. Food samples from homes and retail outlets were collected and cultured. We identified 136 cases of S. Heidelberg infection in 34 states. Shopper-card information, leftover ground turkey from a patient's home containing the outbreak strain and identical antimicrobial resistance profiles of clinical and retail samples pointed to plant A as the source. On 3 August, plant A recalled 36 million pounds of ground turkey. This outbreak increased consumer interest in MDR Salmonella infections acquired through United States-produced poultry and played a vital role in strengthening food safety policies related to Salmonella and raw ground poultry.

Keywords: Food-borne infections; Salmonella; food safety; outbreaks; salmonellosis.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Infections with Salmonella Heidelberg, by state, February–November, 2011 (N = 136).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Infections with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Heidelberg reported to PulseNet, March 2011–April 2012.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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