Oyster ordering guide for beginners
Taste clams like a pro with these user-friendly tips from Ace Shucker.
best 10
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a salmonella outbreak linked to raw oysters has sickened at least 64 people in about 24 states.
As of Wednesday, Dec. 24, no deaths related to the outbreak had been reported, but at least 20 people were hospitalized, the CDC announced in a press release the day before. No recalls related to the disease have been announced.
It’s unclear how many potentially contaminated oysters were sold, and officials said no common source of oysters has been identified by the CDC and Food and Drug Administration, which are also investigating.
“When compared to other Salmonella outbreaks associated with oysters, people in this outbreak are hospitalized at a higher rate than expected,” the CDC said in a statement. “State and local public health officials are interviewing people about various foods they ate in the week before they became ill.”
Of the 27 people interviewed, 74% said they ate raw oysters.
Salmonella outbreaks in 22 states
As of Tuesday, Dec. 23, salmonella outbreaks linked to oysters have sickened dozens of people in the following states:
- arizona
- California
- colorado
- connecticut
- Delaware
- georgia
- florida
- illinois
- kentucky
- maine
- maryland
- Massachusetts
- missouri
- new jersey
- new york
- north carolina
- pennsylvania
- south carolina
- south dakota
- tennessee
- texas
- virginia
What is salmonella?
Salmonella is a microorganism that can cause serious and potentially fatal infections in children, the elderly, and other people with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC.
Most people infected with Salmonella begin to develop symptoms 12 to 72 hours after eating the contaminated product. The main symptoms are diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain.
Most people recover without treatment, but in rare cases, the infection may require hospitalization, according to the CDC. Pregnant women are also at higher risk of developing infections and should seek medical attention if they develop symptoms.
Consumers who have been exposed to oysters and are experiencing symptoms should contact their health care provider and, if they have questions about cases in a particular state, should contact that state’s health department, the CDC said.
Natalie Neisa Alland is a senior reporter at USA TODAY. Contact her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her at X @nataliealu
