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NEED TO KNOW
- Two more people have died of vibriosis, the infection caused by the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus, as cases skyrocket in Louisiana
- This year in Louisiana, six people have died and 34 have been infected by the “prolific” bacteria, health officials say
- Humans get infected by the bacteria, which thrive in brackish water, by eating tainted shellfish or swimming in coastal waters with an open wound
Two more people in Louisiana have died after eating oysters tainted with the flesh-eating bacteria, Vibrio vulnificus.
The two fatalities bring the total number of people who have died so far this year from the bacteria to 6, health officials confirmed to WBRZ. The outlet reports that 14 more people were infected, bringing the number of people impacted by the virulent bacteria to 34 — the highest rate of infection in a decade.
The cases are so high that the Louisiana Department of Health issued a statement on July 31, “urging residents to take precautions to prevent infection from Vibrio vulnificus,” the bacteria that cause an infection called Vibriosis.
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“It’s just prolific right now,” Jennifer Armentor, molluscan shellfish program administrator from the Louisiana Department of Health said, per WBR.
Vibrio naturally live in coastal waters, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They can cause an infection if a swimmer has an open wound, a recent tattoo or piercing. However, most people are sickened by Vibrio after eating raw or undercooked shellfish — especially oysters — because as the CDC explains, the shellfish feed by filtering water, so “Vibrio can concentrate inside oysters.”
The oysters that caused the latest deaths were harvested in Louisiana and served in restaurants in Florida and Louisiana. But per the CDC, you cannot tell an oyster has Vibrio — or any other harmful bacteria — just by looking at it.
It earns the nickname “flesh-eating bacteria” because, as the CDC says, some Vibrio infections lead to necrotizing fasciitis — “a severe infection in which the flesh around an open wound dies.”
But while the agency says diarrhea and vomiting are generally the symptoms of Vibrio infections, others can develop a severe infection that leaTwo Dead After Eating Oysters Tainted with Flesh-Eating Bacteria in Louisiana amid Record Number of Infectionsds to amputation, and one in five will die.
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