WEDNESDAY, Aug. 17 (HealthDay News) -- A nationwide outbreak of human Salmonella Typhimurium infections in the United States in 2008 has been attributed to eating a specific brand of contaminated peanut butter and peanut products, according to a study published in the Aug 18 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Elizabeth Cavallaro, M.D., M.P.H., from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues investigated a nationwide outbreak of salmonella infections. Two case-control studies, product "trace-back," and environmental investigations were conducted between 2008 and 2009 in 46 states, among 714 cases defined as laboratory-confirmed infection caused by the outbreak strain of Salmonella Typhimurium. A total of 3,918 peanut butter-containing products were recalled between January and April of 2009.
The investigators found that nine patients died and 166 were hospitalized. Eating any peanut butter, peanut butter-containing products, and frozen chicken products was correlated with illness in study one (matched odds ratio [OR], 2.5, 2.2, and 4.6, respectively). A single institutional brand of peanut butter, referred to as brand X, distributed to all facilities, was identified during examinations of focal clusters and single cases associated with nine institutions. Eating peanut butter outside the home (matched OR, 3.9) and two brands of peanut butter crackers, each made from brand X peanut paste, were correlated with illness (matched OR, 17.2 and 3.6 for brand A and B, respectively). The outbreak strain was isolated from brand X peanut butter, brand A crackers, and 15 other products.
"This outbreak was instrumental in refocusing national attention on food safety and spurring discussions about gaps in the food safety system and methods for establishing and enforcing basic preventive controls," the authors write.
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