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WASHINGTON, Aug 2 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Health officials are sending a warning to residents in Gulf Coast states after eight people are dead from the flesh-eating bacteria called Vibrio vulnificus.
On July 31, the Louisiana Department of Heath confirmed 17 cases of the flesh-eating bacteria this year, all of which resulted in hospitalizations. Additionally four cases resulted in death. About 75% of those cases were due to wound infection via seawater.
Additionally, the Florida Department of Health confirmed 13 cases and four deaths from Vibrio this year. Both Mississippi and Alabama have also reported single cases, neither fatal.
Health officials are encouraging residents to educate themselves in order to stay safe during the summer months.
Vibrio is the source of about 80,000 illnesses in the United States per year, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vibrio naturally live in coastal waters, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most people are sickened by vibrio after eating raw or undercooked shellfish — particularly oysters — because the bacteria will “concentrate” inside the shellfish, the CDC explains. However, they naturally live in brackish water and cause an infection if a swimmer has an open wound — or a recent tattoo or piercing.
Most infections occur from May through October when water temperatures are warmer.
Symptoms of a Vibrio infection vary, depending on how the bacteria is contracted. For bloodstream infections, the CDC says someone may experience “fever, chills, dangerously low blood pressure, and blistering skin lesions.” However, for a wound infection, a fever will accompany swelling and discharge around the wound. And for those who ingest the bacteria, it can mimic food poisoning, with “watery diarrhea, often accompanied by stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting, and fever.”
The CDC says a Vibrio infection is treatable with antibiotics, but in more dire cases, “doctors may need to amputate a patient’s legs or arms to remove dead or infected tissue.”
The flesh-eating bacteria is fatal for 1 in 5 people, according to the CDC, which warns that some people die within a day or two of exhibiting symptoms. — NNN-AGENCIES
