Hunt for listeriosis source draws a blank as toll rises

Problems in tracing patients makes finding origins of outbreak difficult

The cause of the recent killer listeriosis outbreak in the country remains a mystery despite numerous lab tests.

This is according to Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, who gave an update on the disease during a briefing in Tshwane yesterday.

The country is facing its worst listeriosis outbreak in 40 years, resulting in 61 deaths.

The disease has spread rapidly, with reported infections increasing from 557 in 2017 to 727 thus far this year.

Listeriosis is transmitted through a bacteria found in food, water, soil and faeces of certain animals. Symptoms include headaches, nausea, fever and muscle aches.

Motsoaledi said though the source of the outbreak had not yet been found health officials had identified a dominant strain of the infection through tests on blood and food samples. He said the contamination might have been caused by a single, widely consumed food product or multiple products from the same manufacturer.

He added that the strain was found in blood samples in all provinces, however, they were not able to link it to a particular foodstuff or production site.

“It is like searching for a needle in a haystack. The problem is that unfortunately we have not found the haystack,” Motsoaledi said.

He said the difficulty in tracing patients as well as the large variety of foodstuffs made it difficult to identify the source of the outbreak.

The minister said one abattoir in Tshwane had been served with a prohibition notice after tests were conducted on a piece of chicken which a patient had eaten, however, the strain that was discovered there could not be linked to the outbreak despite further tests being conducted.

Motsoaledi said the disease was treatable, but warned that it was dangerous.

Motsoaledi urged all citizens to be vigilant and observe basic food hygiene practices such as the washing of hands, boiling drinking water and cooking food thoroughly.