Waterborne Disease Outbreaks, 1986–1988

1991 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM C. LEVINE ◽  
WILLIAM T. STEPHENSON ◽  
GUNTHER F. CRAUN
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Giardia Lamblia ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Water ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Human Waste ◽  
Protozoal Parasite ◽  
Viral Illness ◽  
Hot Tubs

From 1986 to 1988, 24 states and Puerto Rico reported 50 outbreaks of illness due to water that people intended to drink, affecting 25,846 persons. The protozoal parasite Giardia lamblia was the agent most commonly implicated in outbreaks, as it has been for the last 10 years; many of these outbreaks were associated with ingestion of chlorinated but unfiltered surface water. Shigella sonnei was the most commonly implicated bacterial pathogen; in outbreaks caused by this pathogen, water supplies were found to be contaminated with human waste. Cryptosporidium contamination of a chlorinated, filtered public water supply caused the largest outbreak during this period, affecting an estimated 13,000 persons. A large multistate outbreak caused by commercially produced ice made from contaminated well water caused illness with Norwalk-like virus among an estimated 5,000 persons. The first reported outbreak of chronic diarrhea of unknown cause associated with drinking untreated well water occurred in 1987. Twenty-six outbreaks due to recreational water use were also reported, including outbreaks of Pseudomonas dermatitis, associated with the use of hot tubs or whirlpools, and swimming-associated shigellosis, giardiasis, and viral illness. Although the total number of reported water-related outbreaks has been declining in recent years, the few large outbreaks due to Cryptosporidium, Norwalk-like agent, S. sonnei, and G. lamblia caused more cases of illness in 1987 than have been reported to the Water-Related Disease Outbreak Surveillance System for any other year since CDC and the Environmental Protection Agency began tabulating these data in 1971.

scholarly journals Removal of Cryptosporidium and polystyrene microspheres from swimming pool water with sand, cartridge, and precoat filters

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
James E. Amburgey ◽  
Kimberly J. Walsh ◽  
Roy R. Fielding ◽  
Michael J. Arrowood
Keyword(s):  
Tap Water ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Field Trials ◽  
Swimming Pool ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Polystyrene Microspheres ◽  
Pool Water ◽  
Cryptosporidium Oocysts ◽  
Removal Efficiencies

Cryptosporidium has caused the majority of waterborne disease outbreaks in treated recreational water venues in the USA for many years running. This research project evaluated some common US swimming pool filters for removing Cryptosporidium oocysts, 5-µm diameter polystyrene microspheres, and 1-µm diameter polystyrene microspheres. A 946 L hot tub with interchangeable sand, cartridge, and precoat filters was used at room temperature for this research. Simulated pool water for each experiment was created from Charlotte, NC (USA) tap water supplemented with alkalinity, hardness, chlorine, and a mixture of artificial sweat and urine. Precoat (i.e., diatomaceous earth and perlite) filters demonstrated pathogen removal efficiencies of 2.3 to 4.4 log (or 99.4–99.996%). However, sand and cartridge filters had average Cryptosporidium removals of 0.19 log (36%) or less. The combined low filter removal efficiencies of sand and cartridge filters along with the chlorine-resistant properties of Cryptosporidium oocysts could indicate a regulatory gap warranting further attention and having significant implications on the protection of public health in recreational water facilities. The 5-µm microspheres were a good surrogate for Cryptosporidium oocysts in this study and hold promise for use in future research projects, field trials, and/or product testing on swimming pool filters.

Contamination of swimming pools and hot tubs biofilms with Acanthamoeba

2018 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Behroz Mahdavi Poor ◽  
Abdolhossein Dalimi ◽  
Fatemeh Ghafarifar ◽  
Fariba Khoshzaban ◽  
Jalal Abdolalizadeh
Keyword(s):  
Pcr Amplification ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Swimming Pools ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Swimming Pool Water ◽  
Specific Fragment ◽  
Hot Tubs ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Tabriz City

Abstract The members of Acanthamoeba genus are ubiquitous amoeba which could be a pathogenic parasite. The amoeba is resistant to the common chlorine concentration that used for disinfecting the swimming pool water. Therefore, the pools can be suitable environments for the survival and multiplication of the amoeba. In this cross sectional study, 10 indoor recreational water centers from different regions of Tabriz city were selected and sampling was done from fixed and floating biofilms of the swimming pools and hot tubs. The samples were cultured and monitored for the presence of amoeba cyst or trophozoite. For molecular identification of Acanthamoeba, PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and sequencing were conducted based on genus specific fragment of 18S ribosomal DNA (Rns). Acanthamoeba contamination was observed in 6 centers of 10 recreational centers. Based on the amoeba isolation from fixed and floating biofilms, 2 (20%) swimming pools, and 5 (50%) hot tubs were contaminated. Based on the type of the sample, the highest contamination was found in the hot tub water (40%) and the least was found in the swimming pools water (10%) and fixed biofilms of the swimming pools (10%). Out of 8 isolates, 5 (62.5%) were shown expected product in PCR amplification. Sequence analysis showed that Acanthamoeba isolates belonged to the T3 and T4 genotypes. The study revealed a high degree of contamination in the indoor recreational water centers in Tabriz city. So, it is essential to pay closer attention to the hygiene of swimming pools and hot tubs.

scholarly journals A sea change ahead for recreational water quality criteria

2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandria B. Boehm ◽  
Nicholas J. Ashbolt ◽  
John M. Colford ◽  
Lee E. Dunbar ◽  
Lora E. Fleming ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Quality Criteria ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Quality Criteria ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Research Needs ◽  
Recreational Water Quality ◽  
Epidemiology Studies ◽  
New Criteria

The United States Environmental Protection Agency is committed to developing new recreational water quality criteria for coastal waters by 2012 to provide increased protection to swimmers. We review the uncertainties and shortcomings of the current recreational water quality criteria, describe critical research needs for the development of new criteria, as well as recommend a path forward for new criteria development. We believe that among the most needed research needs are the completion of epidemiology studies in tropical waters and in waters adversely impacted by urban runoff and animal feces, as well as studies aimed to validate the use of models for indicator and pathogen concentration and health risk predictions.

scholarly journals Wasting Away: To Sludge or Not to Sludge?

2001 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 201-201
Author(s):  
L Nicolle ◽  
M Miller
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Water Contamination ◽  
The United States ◽  
Municipal Sewage ◽  
Infectious Agents ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Protection Agency ◽  
Human Waste ◽  
High Standards

Following a century of high standards of sanitation, food and water safety in North America are often taken for granted. Recent outbreaks of illness attributed to food and water contamination, however, have challenged this complacency. Now, sludge is added to the list of concerns. Sewage sludge is the muddy substance that remains after the treatment of municipal sewage. This material includes not only human waste, but also household and industrial toxic wastes disposed of in local sewers. Federal and provincial Canadian regulations support the use of this material as fertilizer, within acceptable guidelines, as does the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States. The safety of sludge, however, is questioned by some individuals and groups. Specifically, the risk of infectious agents and toxins to workers or other exposed individuals, and the potential for heavy metals and organic chemicals to be transferred from sludge-treated fields into crops are concerns.

scholarly journals A critical evaluation of a flow cytometer used for detecting enterococci in recreational waters

2007 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dawn N. King ◽  
Kristen P. Brenner ◽  
Mark R. Rodgers
Keyword(s):  
Flow Cytometry ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Detection System ◽  
Membrane Filter ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Flow Cytometer ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Recreational Waters ◽  
High Background

The current U. S. Environmental Protection Agency-approved method for enterococci (Method 1600) in recreational water is a membrane filter (MF) method that takes 24 hours to obtain results. If the recreational water is not in compliance with the standard, the risk of exposure to enteric pathogens may occur before the water is identified as hazardous. Because flow cytometry combined with specific fluorescent antibodies has the potential to be used as a rapid detection method for microorganisms, this technology was evaluated as a rapid, same-day method to detect enterococci in bathing beach waters. The flow cytometer chosen for this study was a laser microbial detection system designed to detect labeled antibodies. A comparison of MF counts with flow cytometry counts of enterococci in phosphate buffer and sterile-filtered recreational water showed good agreement between the two methods. However, when flow cytometry was used, the counts were several orders of magnitude higher than the MF counts with no correlation to Enterococcus spike concentrations. The unspiked sample controls frequently had higher counts than the samples spiked with enterococci. Particles within the spiked water samples were probably counted as target cells by the flow cytometer because of autofluorescence or non-specific adsorption of antibody and carryover to subsequent samples. For these reasons, this technology may not be suitable for enterococci detection in recreational waters. Improvements in research and instrument design that will eliminate high background and carryover may make this a viable technology in the future.

scholarly journals Producing Active Secondary Metabolite Against Pathogenic Vibrio spp. by Actinobacteria-Sodium Alginate Co-Culture

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 254-264
Author(s):  
Nuril Azhar ◽  
Ervia Yudiati ◽  
Subagiyo Subagiyo ◽  
Rabia Alghazeer
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Metabolite ◽  
Vibrio Vulnificus ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Inhibition Zone ◽  
Marine Biota ◽  
Genus Streptomyces ◽  
Streptomyces Spp ◽  
Pathogenic Vibrio ◽  
Vibrio Spp

Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyi have been found in aquatic environments and suspected as the primary trigger of WFD (White Feces Disease) outbreaks in aquaculture. This Vibrio spp. has an antibiotic resistance to Ampicillin, Co-Amoxiclav, Amoxicillin, Azithromycin, Actinobacteria and Ciprofloxacin HCL. Actinobacteria and alginate have been reported to increase the marine biota resistance against diseases through prebiotic and probiotic mechanisms. This study aims to discover and increase the secondary metabolite production of Actinobacteria-Alginate and its ability as anti-vibrio. Alginate extraction in the samples dated September 2020 originally from Teluk Awur Bays, Jepara, Central Java, Indonesia (33.73±1.84%) was considerably higher than in May 2021 (22.67±0.3%). Samples were taken from sediment and mangrove root. Actinobacteria strains are macroscopically and microscopically similar to the genus Streptomyces. The most well-known antibiotics were produced by Streptomyces spp. The anti-vibrio test was carried out by Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion. The results were observed by measuring the inhibition zone surrounding the paper disc using a digital calliper. Co-culture strain 90 together with alginate have an approved antibacterial activity against all Vibrio spp. in the concentration of 10.disc-1 mg and 5 mg.disc-1. Co-culture Actinobacteria with alginate has remarkably changed the green-yellow color to olive green/dark red-orange (strains 3, 62, 63, 72, and 90), indicating the transformation of the formation alginate with pigments into other compounds through the biosynthetic pathway. Therefore, alginate enables to support of Actinobacteria by induction the active secondary metabolite as an anti-vibrio to counteract the bacterial pathogen diseases.

scholarly journals The arrival, establishment and spread of a highly virulent Edwardsiella ictaluri strain in farmed tilapia, Oreochr omis spp.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doan Thi Nhinh ◽  
Nguyen Thi Huong Giang ◽  
Kim Van Van ◽  
Lua Thi Dang ◽  
Ha Dong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Natural Infection ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Virulence Gene ◽  
Multidrug Resistant ◽  
Edwardsiella Ictaluri ◽  
Vaccination Programs ◽  
Northern Vietnam ◽  
Domestic Sources

Edwardsiella ictaluri is an emerging bacterial pathogen that affects farmed tilapia ( Oreochromis spp.). This study reports the arrival, establishment, and widespread findings of E. ictaluri in farmed tilapia in Vietnam. Among 26 disease outbreaks from 9 provinces in Northern Vietnam during 2019–2021, 19 outbreaks originated from imported seeds, while outbreaks in seven farms were from domestic sources. Clinically sick fish showed the appearance of numerous white spots in visceral organs, and accumulative mortality reached 30%–65%. Twenty-six representative bacterial isolates recovered from 26 disease outbreaks were identified as E. ictaluri based on a combination of phenotypic tests, genus- and species-specific polymerase chain reaction assays, 16S rRNA and gyrB sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis. All isolates harbored the same virulence gene profiles esrC, evpC, ureA-C, eseI, escD, and virD4. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests revealed that 80.8%–100% of isolates were multidrug resistant, with resistance to 4–8 antimicrobials in the groups of penicillin, macrolides, sulfonamides, amphenicols, and glycopeptides. The experimental challenge successfully induced disease that mimicked natural infection. The median lethal doses (LD ) of the tested isolates (n = 4) were 42–61 colony forming units/fish, indicating their extremely high virulence. This emerging pathogen is established and has spread to various geographical locations, causing serious impacts on farmed tilapia in northern Vietnam. It is likely that this pathogen will continue to spread through contaminated stocks (both imported and domestic sources) and persist. Thus, increased awareness, combined with biosecurity measures and emergent vaccination programs is essential to mitigate the negative impact of this emerging disease on the tilapia farming industry.

scholarly journals Disposable swim diaper retention of Cryptosporidium-sized particles on human subjects in a recreational water setting

2011 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 653-658 ◽  
Author(s):  
James E. Amburgey ◽  
J. Brian Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Human Subject ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Protozoan Parasite ◽  
Bulk Water ◽  
Recreational Water ◽  
Swimming Pools ◽  
Polystyrene Microspheres ◽  
Cryptosporidium Oocysts ◽  
The Usa

Cryptosporidium is a chlorine-resistant protozoan parasite responsible for the majority of waterborne disease outbreaks in recreational water venues in the USA. Swim diapers are commonly used by diaper-aged children participating in aquatic activities. This research was intended to evaluate disposable swim diapers for retaining 5-μm diameter polystyrene microspheres, which were used as non-infectious surrogates for Cryptosporidium oocysts. A hot tub recirculating water without a filter was used for this research. The microsphere concentration in the water was monitored at regular intervals following introduction of microspheres inside of a swim diaper while a human subject undertook normal swim/play activities. Microsphere concentrations in the bulk water showed that the majority (50–97%) of Cryptosporidium-sized particles were released from the swim diaper within 1 to 5 min regardless of the swim diaper type or configuration. After only 10 min of play, 77–100% of the microspheres had been released from all swim diapers tested. This research suggests that the swim diapers commonly used by diaper-aged children in swimming pools and other aquatic activities are of limited value in retaining Cryptosporidium-sized particles. Improved swim diaper solutions are necessary to efficiently retain pathogens and effectively safeguard public health in recreational water venues.

Bacterial Origin of Ostiomeatalcomplex after Viral Infection

2008 ◽  
Vol 139 (2_suppl) ◽  
pp. P73-P73
Author(s):  
Joseph Han ◽  
Joseph Owen Hendley ◽  
Birgit Winther
Keyword(s):  
Viral Infection ◽  
Nasal Cavity ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Group Versus ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Carriage Rate ◽  
Respiratory Viral Infection ◽  
Cohort Group ◽  
Viral Illness ◽  
Upper Respiratory

Objective After a viral infection in the nasal cavity or sinus, superimposed bacteria infection is likely to occur. Therefore the carriage rate of bacterial pathogen in the nasal cavity (NC), nasopharynx (NP), and ostiomeatal complex (OMC) were determined during wellness and upper respiratory viral infection. Methods There were 2 groups in the study. The control group was well with no nasal or sinus problems. The cohort group had an upper respiratory viral infection. The NC, NP, and OMC cultures were taken from each study group. Agars cultured were used to detect S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, and M. catarrhalis. Statistical comparison was made between the groups. The bacterial pathogens were also compared between the various sites of culture within a group. Results There were 91 subjects in the study-51 subjects with an upper respiratory viral infection and 40 control participants. 59% of participants were female. There was no statistical difference in the rate of bacterial pathogen in the NP (p=0.2) or NC (p=0.06) between the control and cohort group. There was a significant increase (p<0.008) of bacterial pathogen in the OMC of viral illness group versus the control group. Bacterial pathogen present in the OMC had a similar pathogen in either the NC or NP. Conclusions This study defines the reservoir of bacteria in the NC or NP for the bacterial pathogen in the OMC during wellness and upper respiratory viral infection.

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