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Hawke's Bay campylobacter outbreak - Expert reaction
Hawke's Bay campylobacter outbreak - Expert reaction
15 August 2016
An outbreak
of gastroenteritis - likely caused by Campylobacter -
has sent at least 20 people to hospital in Hawke's
Bay.
Hawke's Bay District Health Board Medical Officer of Health Dr Nick Jones has saidthe majority of people presenting with the illness were affected by Campylobacter, a water-borne bacteria. Dr Jones has told media that animal faeces might have contaminated the water supply, possibly into the groundwater itself.
The Science Media Centre gathered the following expert reaction. Feel free to use these comments in your coverage. Contact the SMC for more details.
Professor Nigel French, director, Infectious Diseases Research Centre, Massey University, comments:
"Groundwater is much less likely to be contaminated than surface water, but if it isCampylobacter, based on previous experiences, it is most likely to have come from cattle and sheep and run-off of effluent/faeces.
"However, Campylobacter can also be carried by poultry and wild birds. There was a similar outbreak affecting a water supply in Darfield in 2012 (although this was a surface water supply and failure of chlorination and not a groundwater contamination). There have also been some similar, very serious, events internationally - the most infamous is the Walkerton outbreak in Canada in 2000.
"Most communities and most people are supplied by treated drinking water, but there are still a number that use untreated drinking water.
"I think this outbreak
demonstrates that even secure groundwater can become
contaminated (most likely with animal faeces), and therefore
testing and treatment is advised to ensure the best public
health outcomes, particularly if there has been a high-risk
event, such as heavy rainfall."
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