A brand of infant formula made in Argentina was taken off the shelves after analysis of the product revealed the bacterium, Cronobacter sakazakii, a bacterium that can cause meningitis and septicemia, an El Nacional report stated recently (computer translated).
Argentina’s National Administration of Medicines, Food and Medical Technology (ANMAT) ordered the preventive withdrawal after analyzing samples of the SanCor Baby 2 formula.
ANMAT advised the public to abstain from consuming the products that carry an expiration date May 2016.
The World Health Organization concluded in 2004 that Cronobacter (Enterobacter) sakazakii and Salmonella enterica were the organisms of most concern in infant formula.
C. sakazakii was first implicated in a case of neonatal meningitis in 1958, and since then there have been around 70 reported cases of C. sakazakii infection (Drudy et al., 2006). However, it is likely that C. sakazakii is significantly under-reported in all countries. Although C. sakazakii can cause illness in all age groups, infants are believed to be at greatest risk of infection.
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Please note, this article contains some errors in that is has confused the old name of ‘Enterobacter sakazakii’ with ‘Cronobacter sakazakii’, which is just one of 7 species in the Cronobacter genus. All species are regarded as potentially hazardous to health according to WHO. Any article before 2007 refers to ‘Enterobacter sakazakii’. Also the majority of infections are in the adult population, though are regarded as less severe.
Thank you Professor Forythe for your clarification and correction.
Robert