The Health Protection Agency’s Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens
(LEP) in England and Wales, and the Scottish Salmonella Reference Laboratory
(SSRL) in Scotland have confirmed a total of 60 cases of Salmonella
Bareilly infection during August 2003 (to 28 August) (1). There are 41 widely
distributed cases in England and Wales, and 19 in Scotland. The cases range
in age from 1 to 93 years and the gender distribution is even. S.
Bareilly infection might possibly have contributed to the death of one elderly
lady in Scotland. Where known, the dates of onset for these cases range from
30 July to 12 August 2003 (Figure) and the epidemic curve is consistent with
a continuing source.
Figure. Epidemic curve for cases of S. Bareilly in England,
Wales and Scotland, July - August 2003 (N = 43)
S. Bareilly, which was first identified in India in 1928, is
rarely isolated in the United Kingdom. In 2002, 38 cases were confirmed
in England and Wales (two in Scotland) and more than half of them reported
travel to the Indian subcontinent during the incubation period. Since 1995
the LEP has confirmed contamination of certain food items with S.
Bareilly that include: prawns, spices (curry powder, chilli powder, coriander),
coconut, raw fish, raw fish eggs, and yeast powder.
Plasmid analysis performed by the SSRL and the LEP has shown that the outbreak
strain is characterised by a 2.9 kb plasmid. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis
is also being undertaken in both laboratories and the results will be compared.