Most crypto cases at day cares
A “very high proportion” of the illness caused by cryptosporidium is in Lawrence day-care centers, health authorities said Friday.
“I’m not telling anybody not to take their child to a day-care center — my own children have been in a day-care center,” Dr. Gianfranco Pezzino, the state epidemiologist, said during a news conference. “But day-care centers can amplify the community-based outbreak we’re facing now.”
Officials said 64 percent of 76 known cases were associated in some way with day-care centers. Nine centers — out of 286 in the county — have had at least one case, said Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department Director Kay Kent. Later in the day, officials increased the number of confirmed cases to 78.
Authorities have declined to name any of the centers, citing state law that says information about day-care centers cannot be released “in a manner that would identify individuals.”
Children who get diarrhea, the most common symptom of the parasite, must stay home until they get better, Pezzino said.
“A kid with diarrhea doesn’t belong in a day-care center,” he said.
Also Friday, authorities defended their decision not to notify the public about the cryptosporidiosis cases until late August, a month after the first case had appeared.
“Knowing what we know now, I think the Health Department took an aggressive stance,” said Pezzino, who has been advising local authorities on the outbreak. “At least as aggressive as any other investigation I’ve seen before.”
‘Attempt to disseminate’
| Survey to investigate spread of cryptoThis weekend the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department will begin conducting a telephone survey with community members, ill and well, to determine how the cryptosporidium parasite has spread in the community.The questionnaire will ask about such activities as food and drink consumption, swimming activities, travel, animal contact and contact with sick people, all of which could have contributed to the spread.Hundreds of people will be surveyed in coming weeks.For more information, contact Charlotte Marthaler, director of policy and planning for the Health Department, at 843-3060.Protect yourselfThe Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department recommends the following:¢ Wash hands thoroughly with soap after using the toilet and before handling food.¢ Wash hands after every diaper change.¢ Don’t swim while experiencing diarrhea, or for two weeks afterward.¢ Avoid swallowing pool or lake water while swimming. |
No one has been hospitalized with the infection, Kent said Friday.
This week, the Journal-World learned that the Health Department sent letters to the 200-member Lawrence Aquahawks swim team July 25, the day after the first case was confirmed. But it was a month before the public was alerted. By then, 11 cases had been confirmed.
Pezzino said Friday that authorities didn’t have enough information early on to single out pools as a potential cause, even though two swimmers from the same team had been diagnosed with the infection by Aug. 1. Physicians were contacted as early as July 28, he said.
For the first few weeks, Pezzino said, the infection was largely contained to “clusters” — the swim team members, and an unrelated day care. When the 11th case was diagnosed Aug. 22, he said, it appeared the parasite’s reach was beginning to spread further into the community. That’s when the public was notified and pools temporarily closed down.
“There was an attempt to disseminate information to the parts of the public that were considered at risk for the disease, and to all the physicians in the community,” Pezzino said.
Said Kent: “Given the information we had, I believe we acted correctly.”
‘Very large outbreak’
Whatever the origin, Pezzino said Friday, the infection has spread far beyond pools.
“I think what’s happening here is a lot of person-to-person contact,” he said.
The entire state of Kansas had 16 cases of cryptosporidiosis in 2002. Lawrence and Douglas County cases have easily dwarfed that.
“This is a very large outbreak for the state of Kansas,” Pezzino said. “Typically, this is a very rare disease.”
And he expects the number of cases to grow, but he doesn’t know how high.
“How broad is this outbreak? I really can’t tell you,” he said. “I don’t think it’s in the thousands, but I can’t tell you how many.”
Cryptosporidium is a microscopic parasite that causes diarrhea, loose or watery stool, stomach cramps, upset stomach and a slight fever. The parasite can be fatal to patients with weakened immune systems, such as the young, elderly or people with HIV. More than two-thirds of those who contract cryptosporidiosis are children.
There is no treatment for the disease in adults, but federal officials approved a drug for children last year. Those who contract the parasite but are otherwise healthy usually recover within two or three weeks.
The parasite is passed through oral ingestion of even microscopic amounts of tainted feces.
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