Listeria Monocytogenes Outbreak

Listeria monocytogenes Outbreak
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Listeria monocytogenes Outbreak
In 2011, the United States (US) encountered a Listeria monocytogenes outbreak, which was caused by contaminated whole cantaloupes from Jensen Farms in Colorado. After the first few cases of foodborne illness, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) alerted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria that causes listeriosis. The CDC reported the outbreak on 12th September 2011, after 15 individuals in four states were infected (McCollum et al., 2013). The paper focuses on the surveillance systems that were used to identify and track the listeriosis outbreak.
The two primary surveillance systems that were utilized to identify and confirm the presence of listeriosis outbreaks are syndromic and state. In particular, syndromic surveillance entails public health officials investigating, detecting, monitoring, and understanding the health problem. These healthcare professionals gather relevant information, including symptoms from the infected individuals. They use respective diagnostic tools based on the existing health issue to identify the possible cause of the outbreak depending on the symptoms. When it involves foodborne illnesses, health officials consider how such products are handled during their transit to their destinations. For instance, in the case at hand, the contamination of cantaloupes might have occurred at the packing facility (Nyarko et al., 2018). Once the possible cause of the outbreak is identified, information is passed through relevant channels to contain the disease.
Another surveillance system that was used to identify the listeriosis outbreak is the state. In particular, this method involves gathering information from the local and state health departments. Health experts collect the data related to the possible outbreak and analyze it. In most cases, the information gathered is about individuals who portray similar symptoms after visiting the same area or eating the same food. In the scenario at hand, people who were infected with Listeria monocytogenes were found to have eaten cantaloupe from Jensen Farm (McCollum et al., 2013). Even those in other states, such as Texas, were found to have consumed this type of food. In addition to collecting symptoms, state surveillance system tracks other things that infected people have in common to k...