Vibrio parahaemolyticus

One of the common bacterial foodborne pathogens is Vibrio parahaemolyticus. It is the most common seafood pathogen and along with other members of the genus.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a halophilic marine bacterium first isolated from Shirasu, semi-dried juvenile sardine, implicated in an outbreak.

The first food poisoning case due to Vibrio parahaemolyticus reported outside Japan was from the East Coast of the United States in 1971.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus gastroenteritis is generally self limiting with diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, fever and chills being common signs and symptoms of this disease.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is typically present in seafoods and occurs only sporadically on other foods that have been exposed to salt, such as salt-preserved vegetables.

In North America and Europe most outbreaks of Vibrio parahaemolyticus-induced gastroenteritis have been due to the consumption of raw mollusks (oysters and clams) or cooked crustaceans (shrimp, crab and boosters).

The increase of the outbreaks incidence may be attributed to many factors such as warmer water temperatures or an increase in raw shellfish consumption. Vibrio parahaemolyticus can be isolated from coastal waters when the water temperature is 15 °C or above. The organism can only be detected in sediment with the temperature is below 15 °C.
Vibrio parahaemolyticus

Clostridium perfringens food poisoning

Clostridium perfringens food poisoning Clostridium perfringens is a rod–shaped bacterium, it can form a spore when conditions are unfavorable for growth and is also an anaerobe so grows in the absence of oxygen. Clostridium perfringens food poisoning is rarely fatal. 

Clostridium perfringens does not produce toxin when it is multiplying in food stored at a warm temperature but when that food is eaten the bacteria form spores and at the same time as endotoxin, which irritates the intestinal wall, causing diarrhea. 

This is not exactly the same as toxic food poisoning or infective food poisoning but has some characteristics of both. 

The incubation period is longer than with food poisoning where exotoxin has been produced, as caused by Staphylococcus aureus and shorter than infective food poisoning as caused by Salmonella. 

Incubation period : 8-22 hours (usually 12-18 hours) 

Duration of illness : 12-24 hours 

Symptoms : Abdominal pains and diarrhea. 

The patient rarely vomits. Clostridium perfringens is frequently present in human and animal intestines. Flies and bluebottles are usually heavily infected with Clostridium perfringens. 

Early May this year Clostridium perfringens outbreak occurred at Central Louisiana State Hospital was recently linked to contaminated chicken salad, 40 people were sickened in the outbreak and three people died. 

The outbreak almost certainly occurred as a result of improper food handling procedures. Clostridium perfringens food poisoning