Outbreaks caused by sprouts, United States, 1998-2010: lessons learned and solutions needed.

After a series of outbreaks associated with sprouts in the mid-1990s, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published guidelines in 1999 for sprouts producers to reduce the risk of contamination.

Leptospirosis outbreak following severe flooding: a rapid assessment and mass prophylaxis campaign; Guyana, January-February 2005.

Background: Leptospirosis is a zoonosis usually transmitted through contact with water or soil contaminated with urine from infected animals. Severe flooding can put individuals at greater risk for contracting leptospirosis in endemic areas. Rapid testing for the disease and large-scale interventions are necessary to identify and control infection.

Nonfoodborne Vibrio infections: an important cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, 1997-2006.

Background: Infections due to Vibrio species cause an estimated 8000 illnesses annually, often through consumption of undercooked seafood. Like foodborne Vibrio infections, nonfoodborne Vibrio infections (NFVI) also result in serious illness, but awareness of these infections is limited.

Methods: We analyzed illnesses occuring during the period 1997-2006 that were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Cholera and Other Vibrio Illness Surveillance system.

Outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium Definitive Type 104 infection linked to commercial ground beef, northeastern United States, 2003-2004.

Background: Multidrug-resistant Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium Definitive Type 104 (DT104) emerged in the 1990s and is associated with greater clinical severity than pansusceptible S. Typhimurium. Although infection with DT104 is common in the United States, it is rarely associated with outbreaks.