In a follow up to a story 10 days ago, American Samoa health authorities are reporting an increase in amoebic dysentery cases while the source of the outbreak is still a mystery.
According to a Radio New Zealand report today, the number of cases have shot up to 165, with more than a dozen requiring hospitalization.
Epidemiologist Mark Durand notes that 56 of the cases have been confirmed as Entamoeba histolytica, a protozoan parasitic cause of dysentery, while cases of Shigella have also been reported. Shigella is the cause of bacillary dysentery.
Durand says they have yet to pinpoint a common source saying, “It doesn’t a particular store, a particular eating place, a particular event, a particular part of the island, a school, a workplace, a food source that seems like it is the unifying factor behind all of these cases.”
For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page
