Food-related illness and death in the United States. (original) (raw)

• Journal List
• Emerg Infect Dis
• v.5(5); Sep-Oct 1999
• PMC2627714

Emerg Infect Dis. 1999 Sep-Oct; 5(5): 607–625.

Division of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA. pfm0@cdc.gov

This is a publication of the U.S. Government. This publication is in the public domain and is therefore without copyright. All text from this work may be reprinted freely. Use of these materials should be properly cited.

Abstract

To better quantify the impact of foodborne diseases on health in the United States, we compiled and analyzed information from multiple surveillance systems and other sources. We estimate that foodborne diseases cause approximately 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths in the United States each year. Known pathogens account for an estimated 14 million illnesses, 60, 000 hospitalizations, and 1,800 deaths. Three pathogens, Salmonella, Listeria, and Toxoplasma, are responsible for 1,500 deaths each year, more than 75% of those caused by known pathogens, while unknown agents account for the remaining 62 million illnesses, 265,000 hospitalizations, and 3,200 deaths. Overall, foodborne diseases appear to cause more illnesses but fewer deaths than previously estimated.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (168K).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

• Bean NH, Martin SM, Bradford H., Jr PHLIS: an electronic system for reporting public health data from remote sites. Am J Public Health. 1992 Sep;82(9):1273–1276. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Levine WC, Griffin PM. Vibrio infections on the Gulf Coast: results of first year of regional surveillance. Gulf Coast Vibrio Working Group. J Infect Dis. 1993 Feb;167(2):479–483. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Monto AS, Koopman JS. The Tecumseh Study. XI. Occurrence of acute enteric illness in the community. Am J Epidemiol. 1980 Sep;112(3):323–333. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Chalker RB, Blaser MJ. A review of human salmonellosis: III. Magnitude of Salmonella infection in the United States. Rev Infect Dis. 1988 Jan-Feb;10(1):111–124. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Garthright WE, Archer DL, Kvenberg JE. Estimates of incidence and costs of intestinal infectious diseases in the United States. Public Health Rep. 1988 Mar-Apr;103(2):107–115. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Talan DA, Moran GJ, Mower WR, Newdow M, Ong S, Slutsker L, Jarvis WR, Conn LA, Pinner RW. EMERGEncy ID NET: an emergency department-based emerging infections sentinel network. The EMERGEncy ID NET Study Group. Ann Emerg Med. 1998 Dec;32(6):703–711. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Levine WC, Smart JF, Archer DL, Bean NH, Tauxe RV. Foodborne disease outbreaks in nursing homes, 1975 through 1987. JAMA. 1991 Oct 16;266(15):2105–2109. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Taylor JP, Perdue JN. The changing epidemiology of human brucellosis in Texas, 1977-1986. Am J Epidemiol. 1989 Jul;130(1):160–165. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Chomel BB, DeBess EE, Mangiamele DM, Reilly KF, Farver TB, Sun RK, Barrett LR. Changing trends in the epidemiology of human brucellosis in California from 1973 to 1992: a shift toward foodborne transmission. J Infect Dis. 1994 Nov;170(5):1216–1223. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Mishu B, Blaser MJ. Role of infection due to Campylobacter jejuni in the initiation of Guillain-Barré syndrome. Clin Infect Dis. 1993 Jul;17(1):104–108. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Bokete TN, O'Callahan CM, Clausen CR, Tang NM, Tran N, Moseley SL, Fritsche TR, Tarr PI. Shiga-like toxin-producing Escherichia coli in Seattle children: a prospective study. Gastroenterology. 1993 Dec;105(6):1724–1731. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Rowe PC, Orrbine E, Lior H, Wells GA, McLaine PN. A prospective study of exposure to verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli among Canadian children with haemolytic uraemic syndrome. The CPKDRC co-investigators. Epidemiol Infect. 1993 Feb;110(1):1–7. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Hedberg CW, Savarino SJ, Besser JM, Paulus CJ, Thelen VM, Myers LJ, Cameron DN, Barrett TJ, Kaper JB, Osterholm MT. An outbreak of foodborne illness caused by Escherichia coli O39:NM, an agent not fitting into the existing scheme for classifying diarrheogenic E. coli. J Infect Dis. 1997 Dec;176(6):1625–1628. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Tappero JW, Schuchat A, Deaver KA, Mascola L, Wenger JD. Reduction in the incidence of human listeriosis in the United States. Effectiveness of prevention efforts? The Listeriosis Study Group. JAMA. 1995 Apr 12;273(14):1118–1122. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Schuchat A, Lizano C, Broome CV, Swaminathan B, Kim C, Winn K. Outbreak of neonatal listeriosis associated with mineral oil. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 1991 Mar;10(3):183–189. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Hoffman TA, Ruiz CJ, Counts GW, Sachs JM, Nitzkin JL. Waterborne typhoid fever in Dade County, Florida. Clinical and therapeutic evaluation of 105 bacteremic patients. Am J Med. 1975 Oct;59(4):481–487. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Klotz SA, Jorgensen JH, Buckwold FJ, Craven PC. Typhoid fever. An epidemic with remarkably few clinical signs and symptoms. Arch Intern Med. 1984 Mar;144(3):533–537. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Mermin JH, Townes JM, Gerber M, Dolan N, Mintz ED, Tauxe RV. Typhoid fever in the United States, 1985-1994: changing risks of international travel and increasing antimicrobial resistance. Arch Intern Med. 1998 Mar 23;158(6):633–638. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Cohen ML, Tauxe RV. Drug-resistant Salmonella in the United States: an epidemiologic perspective. Science. 1986 Nov 21;234(4779):964–969. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Black RE, Craun GF, Blake PA. Epidemiology of common-source outbreaks of shigellosis in the United States, 1961-1975. Am J Epidemiol. 1978 Jul;108(1):47–52. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Levine WC, Bennett RW, Choi Y, Henning KJ, Rager JR, Hendricks KA, Hopkins DP, Gunn RA, Griffin PM. Staphylococcal food poisoning caused by imported canned mushrooms. J Infect Dis. 1996 May;173(5):1263–1267. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Holmberg SD, Blake PA. Staphylococcal food poisoning in the United States. New facts and old misconceptions. JAMA. 1984 Jan 27;251(4):487–489. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Mahon BE, Mintz ED, Greene KD, Wells JG, Tauxe RV. Reported cholera in the United States, 1992-1994: a reflection of global changes in cholera epidemiology. JAMA. 1996 Jul 24;276(4):307–312. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Shapiro RL, Altekruse S, Hutwagner L, Bishop R, Hammond R, Wilson S, Ray B, Thompson S, Tauxe RV, Griffin PM. The role of Gulf Coast oysters harvested in warmer months in Vibrio vulnificus infections in the United States, 1988-1996. Vibrio Working Group. J Infect Dis. 1998 Sep;178(3):752–759. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Hlady WG, Klontz KC. The epidemiology of Vibrio infections in Florida, 1981-1993. J Infect Dis. 1996 May;173(5):1176–1183. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Ostroff S. Yersinia as an emerging infection: epidemiologic aspects of Yersiniosis. Contrib Microbiol Immunol. 1995;13:5–10. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Skeels MR, Sokolow R, Hubbard CV, Andrus JK, Baisch J. Cryptosporidium infection in Oregon public health clinic patients 1985-88: the value of statewide laboratory surveillance. Am J Public Health. 1990 Mar;80(3):305–308. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Roberts CL, Morin C, Addiss DG, Wahlquist SP, Mshar PA, Hadler JL. Factors influencing Cryptosporidium testing in Connecticut. J Clin Microbiol. 1996 Sep;34(9):2292–2293. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Petersen C. Cryptosporidium and the food supply. Lancet. 1995 May 6;345(8958):1128–1129. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Petersen C. Cryptosporidiosis in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus. Clin Infect Dis. 1992 Dec;15(6):903–909. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Herwaldt BL, Ackers ML. An outbreak in 1996 of cyclosporiasis associated with imported raspberries. The Cyclospora Working Group. N Engl J Med. 1997 May 29;336(22):1548–1556. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Addiss DG, Davis JP, Roberts JM, Mast EE. Epidemiology of giardiasis in Wisconsin: increasing incidence of reported cases and unexplained seasonal trends. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 1992 Jul;47(1):13–19. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Dennis DT, Smith RP, Welch JJ, Chute CG, Anderson B, Herndon JL, von Reyn CF. Endemic giardiasis in New Hampshire: a case-control study of environmental risks. J Infect Dis. 1993 Jun;167(6):1391–1395. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Petersen LR, Cartter ML, Hadler JL. A food-borne outbreak of Giardia lamblia. J Infect Dis. 1988 Apr;157(4):846–848. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Osterholm MT, Forfang JC, Ristinen TL, Dean AG, Washburn JW, Godes JR, Rude RA, McCullough JG. An outbreak of foodborne giardiasis. N Engl J Med. 1981 Jan 1;304(1):24–28. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Guerina NG, Hsu HW, Meissner HC, Maguire JH, Lynfield R, Stechenberg B, Abroms I, Pasternack MS, Hoff R, Eaton RB, et al. Neonatal serologic screening and early treatment for congenital Toxoplasma gondii infection. The New England Regional Toxoplasma Working Group. N Engl J Med. 1994 Jun 30;330(26):1858–1863. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Tucker AW, Haddix AC, Bresee JS, Holman RC, Parashar UD, Glass RI. Cost-effectiveness analysis of a rotavirus immunization program for the United States. JAMA. 1998 May 6;279(17):1371–1376. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Parashar UD, Holman RC, Clarke MJ, Bresee JS, Glass RI. Hospitalizations associated with rotavirus diarrhea in the United States, 1993 through 1995: surveillance based on the new ICD-9-CM rotavirus-specific diagnostic code. J Infect Dis. 1998 Jan;177(1):13–17. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Jin S, Kilgore PE, Holman RC, Clarke MJ, Gangarosa EJ, Glass RI. Trends in hospitalizations for diarrhea in United States children from 1979 through 1992: estimates of the morbidity associated with rotavirus. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 1996 May;15(5):397–404. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Kilgore PE, Holman RC, Clarke MJ, Glass RI. Trends of diarrheal disease--associated mortality in US children, 1968 through 1991. JAMA. 1995 Oct 11;274(14):1143–1148. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Glass RI, Noel J, Mitchell D, Herrmann JE, Blacklow NR, Pickering LK, Dennehy P, Ruiz-Palacios G, de Guerrero ML, Monroe SS. The changing epidemiology of astrovirus-associated gastroenteritis: a review. Arch Virol Suppl. 1996;12:287–300. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Wolfaardt M, Taylor MB, Booysen HF, Engelbrecht L, Grabow WO, Jiang X. Incidence of human calicivirus and rotavirus infection in patients with gastroenteritis in South Africa. J Med Virol. 1997 Apr;51(4):290–296. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Vial PA, Kotloff KL, Tall BD, Morris JG, Jr, Levine MM. Detection by immune electron microscopy of 27-nm viral particles associated with community-acquired diarrhea in children. J Infect Dis. 1990 Mar;161(3):571–573. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Donelli G, Ruggeri FM, Tinari A, Marziano ML, Menichella D, Caione D, Concato C, Rocchi G, Vella S. A three-year diagnostic and epidemiological study on viral infantile diarrhoea in Rome. Epidemiol Infect. 1988 Apr;100(2):311–320. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Riepenhoff-Talty M, Saif LJ, Barrett HJ, Suzuki H, Ogra PL. Potential spectrum of etiological agents of viral enteritis in hospitalized infants. J Clin Microbiol. 1983 Feb;17(2):352–356. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Suzuki H, Konno T, Kutsuzawa T, Imai A, Tazawa F, Ishida N, Katsushima N, Sakamoto M. The occurrence of calicivirus in infants with acute gastroenteritis. J Med Virol. 1979;4(4):321–326. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Pang XL, Joensuu J, Vesikari T. Human calicivirus-associated sporadic gastroenteritis in Finnish children less than two years of age followed prospectively during a rotavirus vaccine trial. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 1999 May;18(5):420–426. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
• Bell BP, Shapiro CN, Alter MJ, Moyer LA, Judson FN, Mottram K, Fleenor M, Ryder PL, Margolis HS. The diverse patterns of hepatitis A epidemiology in the United States-implications for vaccination strategies. J Infect Dis. 1998 Dec;178(6):1579–1584. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Emerging Infectious Diseases are provided here courtesy of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention