Quebec man
died of listeriosis, federal health agency confirms
Source of Article: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2009/03/16/que-listeriosis.html Last Updated: Monday, March 16, 2009 | 9:06 PM CTCBC News
The Public Health Agency of Canada says a Quebec man recently died of listeriosis
linked to the 2008 countrywide outbreak, bringing the total number of deaths
to 21. The agency said in a release Friday that the Quebec Health Ministry had
reported a new case of listeriosis in an individual who became sick in
November 2008 and died in January. After reviewing information from Quebec health authorities, the federal
agency said it has determined that the case meets the criteria established
for last year's outbreak of the food-borne illness — which was linked to
Maple Leaf Foods meat products produced at a Toronto plant — and can be
considered a confirmed case. "The strain of listeriosis from this newly reported case matches the
2008 outbreak strain and the timing of the illness falls within the
incubation timeline of the outbreak," the agency said. According to the agency, in the outbreak, there have been a total of 57
confirmed cases of listeriosis and 21 cases where listeriosis was the
underlying or contributing cause of death. However, while the latest death is considered to be part of the 2008
outbreak, the source of the individual's infection could not be confirmed,
the agency said. "Determining with certainty what the individual ate last year was
not possible," the agency said. The agency also stressed that the outbreak is over. "There is
currently no listeriosis outbreak ongoing in Canada at this time." Each year, between 100 and 140 cases of listeriosis are reported in
Canada, the agency said. For most people, the rise posed by listeria is very
low. Healthy people who are exposed to the bacterium Listeria
monocytogenes, commonly referred to as listeria, are rarely
affected, but the risks are higher for infants, the elderly, pregnant women
and people with weakened immune systems. |
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