Bug outbreak 'most serious' ever recorded
BERLIN: Germany's killer E.coli outbreak is the most serious of its kind recorded in the world to date, authorities said on Sunday.
The death toll from the epidemic currently stands at 35, all but one of them in Germany.
A total of 3,255 people across 14 countries have fallen sick after being infected by EHEC (enterohaemorrhagic E. coli) traced to vegetable sprouts grown in northern Germany. All but five victims are from or had visited the country.
Many are seriously ill with bloody diarrhoea and potentially life-threatening conditions such as haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a serious kidney ailment.
"This wave of EHEC and haemolytic uraemic syndrome cases in Germany is the most significant recorded in the world to date," said Nele Boehme, spokeswoman for the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR).
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011
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