The Transmission of Listeria - Essay Example

"The Transmission of Listeria" is a great example of a paper on infections. 
This is a bacteria genus, which is comprised of ten species. A key pathogen among human beings is the L. monocytogenes (Better Health, 2013). This is associated with causing listeriosis, which is an infection that develops because of consuming food that is contaminated with bacteria. This disease is common among newborns, pregnant women, and adults that have weakened immune systems. As such, the mortality rate of this disease is approximately 20 percent with the main clinical manifestations as meningitis and sepsis.

Transmission

            The transmission of the disease is based on the consumption of contaminated vegetables. Such could be from soil and manure that farmers use as fertilizers. Animals also are carriers of the bacteria, which could contaminate dairy and meat products. Further, processed foods, which include cheese, could be contaminated after processing. Hence, the consumption of these products aids in the transmission of the disease to human beings. On the same note, the consumption of unpasteurized foods or milk, which is contaminated with the bacteria facilitates the transmission of the disease.

Real Life Outbreak

A recent report from the CDC indicates that there was a multistate outbreak of Listeriosis in California and Maryland (CDC, 2014). The report showed that eight persons had been infected with Listeria monocytogenes where seven of them were hospitalized (Better Health, 2013). This outbreak is associated with cheese products, which were identified in Roos Foods of the Delaware, Kenton.

Clinical Symptoms

Key symptoms of the disease include headache, fever, aches and pain, vomiting, stiff neck, confusion, tiredness, septicemia, and meningitis (Foodsafety, 2014). The incubation period of the disease is between 3 and 70 days. However, the illness has a duration of days to weeks. For pregnant women, antibiotics are used as the most effective means of preventing the infection from attacking the newborn or fetus. Babies and adults are treated through the administration of a similar antibiotic.

FDA precautions

1. It is essential that farmers focus on using recommended fertilizers, which will not contribute towards the contamination of the vegetables.
2. Processing procedures, which are adopted for the dairy and meat products needs also to focus on ensuring that these products are not contaminated with the bacteria.
3. Vegetables should be prepared as soon as possible and consumed immediately to ensure that there is no contamination with the disease.
4. Nutritionists need to be visiting all the food preparation joints to investigate on the food sources. This will ensure that risky sources of food are eliminated from the supply chain to consumers.

“Pot Luck” foods

            Examples of “Pot Luck” foods are cheese and yogurt. Recommended food handling involves washing of hands during food preparation. It is also recommended that the fridge temperature for the food should be below 50C, and refrigerated foods should not be used after their expiry dates (Foodsafety, 2014). In addition, the fridge needs to be kept clean always.

Agency to contact

            When there is any suspicion of the well-borne illness outbreak, it is essential to contact the center for disease control and prevention (CDC). This is because the CDC has the required resources, which aid in investigating the nature of the outbreak. Further, the CDC aids in providing credible information on how to prevent the progression of the disease, as well as treating the disease.