By Robert Herriman @bactiman63
Last week, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health reported (computer translated) a Campylobacter outbreak in Askøy, Hordaland county, Norway. Some 2,000 people have been sickened, presenting with symptoms of diarrhea, fever and abdominal pains.
Image/CDC
It was believed that water was the source of the outbreak.
Last Wednesday, a patient from Askøy died at Haukeland University Hospital (computer translated). The patient was admitted with gastrointestinal symptoms during the weekend. The person has been diagnosed with Campylobacter. The patient had a very serious underlying disorder. An autopsy is scheduled to determine the cause of death.
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Campylobacter infections are the most commonly reported gastrointestinal infections in Norway, and in 2018 about 3,600 cases were reported to the Communicable Disease Reporting System (MSIS).
The disease causes diarrhea and abdominal pain, and in most cases it is self-limiting after about a week. Some patients may have a longer course of disease where the symptoms return a few days after starting to improve. In rare cases, a few joint inflammation (reactive arthritis) or Guillain-Barré syndrome. Fatalities are rarely reported.
The last major campylobacter outbreak in Norway was at Røros in 2007, where about 1500 people were ill.
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