Elizabethkingia in Illinois" A rare bloodstream infection"

 

(HealthDay News) — A cluster of rare bloodstream infections was discovered by Illinois health officials while investigating an outbreak in Wisconsin.
An additional 10 cases of infection from the bacterium Elizabethkingia were announced Wednesday by the Illinois Department of Public Health, including 6 deaths, the Associated Press reported. Most cases occurred this year, but some date back to 2014.
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The strain of Elizabethkingia in the Illinois cases is different from the one in the Wisconsin outbreak. One death in Illinois linked to the same strain in Wisconsin was previously confirmed, the AP reported.
The cases in Illinois were identified when hospitals in that state were asked to help with the investigation into the Wisconsin outbreak.

Elizabethkingia bacteria are rarely reported to cause illness in humans.  Symptoms among people diagnosed with Elizabethkingia infection can include fever, shortness of breath, chills or cellulitis. Confirmation of the illness requires a laboratory test.
IDPH is currently investigating a cluster of bacterial infections caused by Elizabethkingia anophelis.  The majority of patients acquiring these infections are over 65 years old, and all patients have a history of at least one underlying serious illness.
To date, Wisconsin is reporting 59 confirmed cases, including 18 deaths; Michigan is reporting one confirmed case, including one death.  Illinois has one case matching the strain found in Wisconsin.  The remaining 10 cases in the current cluster are of a different strain.