Epidemiology and Infection · 1993 · 358 citations · 25 references
Veterinary MedicineVeterinary EpidemiologyVeterinary MicrobiologyDiagnostic MicrobiologyFood SafetyFoodborne Disease EpidemiologyFoodborne PathogensMicrobiological Examination Of MeatVeterinary BacteriologyVeterinary Diagnostic MicrobiologyAbattoir ExposureEscherichia Coli O157 DetectionEscherichia Coli O157:h7 In MeatMeat Microbiological ContaminationMeat-borne InfectionsMeat-borne PathogensPhage TypingPlasmid Gene Content Analysis
In 1992, outbreaks of verocytotoxin‑producing E. coli O157 in South Yorkshire were linked to beef from a local abattoir. The investigation examined bovine rectal swabs, carcass meat, and surface swabs for E.
Summary In May-June 1992 cases of infection with verocytotoxin-producing (VT+) Escherichia coli O157 in South Yorkshire could have been associated with prior consumption of beef from a local abattoir. During investigation of the abattoir, bovine rectal swabs and samples of meat and surface swabs from beef carcasses were examined for E. coli O157, isolates of which were tested for toxigenicity, plasmid content and phage type. E. coli O157 was isolated from 84 (4%) of 2103 bovine rectal swabs; of these 84, 78 (93%) were VT+, the most common phage types being 2 and 8, the types implicated in the cluster of human cases. Positive cattle were from diverse sources within England. E. coli O157 was isolated from 7 (30%) of 23 carcasses of rectal swab-positive cattle and from 2 (8%) of 25 carcasses of rectal swab-negative cattle. The study has shown that cattle may be a reservoir of VT+ E. coli O157, and that contamination of carcasses during slaughter and processing may be how beef and beef products become contaminated and thereby transmit the organism to man.
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