WEDNESDAY, Aug. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Chicks and ducklings from a mail-order hatchery in Ohio are linked to two salmonella outbreaks in the United States, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday.
Salmonella Altona has sickened 65 people in 20 states and Salmonella Johannesburg has sickened 27 people in 15 states.
Interviews with 54 of the people infected with the Altona strain found that 41 (76 percent) had contact with live poultry (chicks, chickens, ducklings, ducks, geese and turkeys) before they became ill, the CDC said.
Interviews with 24 of the people infected with the Johannesburg variant revealed that 17 (71 percent) of them had contact with live poultry before they got sick.
Federal, state and local public health and agriculture officials investigating the outbreaks traced both back to chicks and ducklings from a single mail-order hatchery in Ohio.
People who touch live poultry or anything in the area where live poultry live and roam should immediately wash their hands thoroughly with soap and water, and adults should supervise young children's handwashing, the CDC advised.
The agency also said that mail-order hatcheries, agricultural feed stores and others who sell or display chicks, ducklings and other live poultry should provide consumers with health-related facts, including information about the risk of salmonella infection.
More information
The CDC has more about the risk of salmonella infection from live baby poultry.
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