Epidemiological information: Outbreak of Salmonella Infantis
Related Public Health Notice
March 4, 2016
What is epidemiology?
Epidemiology is the study of disease in a population. Epidemiologists, or "disease detectives," use surveillance systems to identify those who are sick and confirm that the sick people are part of this event. They then gather information from the people who got sick and review the clues from all parts of the investigation that might reveal the cause of the illness event.
The figure below forms part of the epidemiological investigation into this outbreak. An "epi curve" (Figure 1) is a valuable reference tool in any epidemiological investigation. An epi curve shows when cases begin, when they peak, and when they trail off. Certain details of the people who got sick (Table 1) also help epidemiologists as they work to solve the questions involved in foodborne illness.
Figure 1. Number of people infected with the outbreak strain of S. Infantis*
* Information available for 110 of 110 cases
Text equivalent for figure 1
Week of illness onset or specimen collection | Number of cases |
---|---|
Mar 01 | 0 |
Mar 08 | 0 |
Mar 15 | 1 |
Mar 22 | 1 |
Mar 29 | 0 |
Apr 05 | 1 |
Apr 12 | 0 |
Apr 19 | 0 |
Apr 26 | 0 |
May 03 | 0 |
May 10 | 0 |
May 17 | 0 |
May 24 | 0 |
May 31 | 0 |
Jun 07 | 0 |
Jun 14 | 0 |
Jun 21 | 1 |
Jun 28 | 3 |
Jul 05 | 1 |
Jul 12 | 0 |
Jul 19 | 2 |
Jul 26 | 1 |
Aug 02 | 2 |
Aug 09 | 6 |
Aug 16 | 1 |
Aug 23 | 2 |
Aug 30 | 2 |
Sep 06 | 7 |
Sep 13 | 8 |
Sep 20 | 4 |
Sep 27 | 5 |
Oct 04 | 3 |
Oct 11 | 4 |
Oct 18 | 3 |
Oct 25 | 9 |
Nov 01 | 4 |
Nov 08 | 10 |
Nov 15 | 4 |
Nov 22 | 6 |
Nov 29 | 2 |
Dec 6 | 5 |
Dec 13 | 3 |
Dec 20 | 2 |
Dec 27 | 1 |
Jan 3 | 2 |
Jan 10 | 2 |
Jan 17 | 0 |
Jan 24 | 0 |
Jan 31 | 0 |
Note: It can take several weeks from the time a person becomes ill to when this illness is reported and testing confirms a link to the outbreak. |
Outbreak status | Ongoing |
---|---|
Case count | 110 |
Provinces/Territories | 9 |
Hospitalizations | 21 |
Deaths | 0 |
Gender (m:f) | 46:64 |
Age range in years | 0-87 |
Recall | No |
Information available for 110 of 110 cases |
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