Man, 54, dies of flesh-eating bacteria after eating raw oysters
Man, 54, dies of flesh-eating bacteria after eating raw oysters
- 54-year-old from Missouri contracted flesh-eating bacteria and died last week
- Humans became infected with Vibrio vulnificus, carried by oysters and other shellfish
A 54-year-old man has died of a flesh-eating bacteria after eating raw oysters.
The St. Louis County Public Health Department said the Missouri man was infected with Vibrio vulnificus – a disease caused by consuming the bacteria Vibrio.
Normally this is ingested from eating oysters and other raw or undercooked shellfish.
The man, who has not yet been identified, had recently eaten raw oysters at The Fruit Stand & Seafood in Manchester, BNO News reports.
He died Thursday despite efforts to save him at St. Clare Hospital. Health officials were notified of the tragedy the next day.
A 54-year-old man has died from flesh-eating bacteria after eating raw oysters from The Fruit Stand & Seafood (pictured) in Manchester
The St. Louis County Public Health Department said the Missouri man was infected with Vibrio vulnificus – a disease caused by consuming the bacteria Vibrio (stock image)
“There is no evidence that the company did anything to contaminate the oysters, which were likely already contaminated when the establishment received them,” the health department said in a statement.
“All remaining oysters in the establishment are embargoed by DPH.”
The raw oysters were sold at the shop on Manchester Road and anyone who has bought them there recently must throw them away to prevent new cases.
Researchers are still trying to determine the original source of the deadly oysters.
Infected people tend to experience watery diarrhea, cramping, nausea, and vomiting within the first 24 hours of consuming undercooked seafood.
In some cases, antibiotics can be used to fight the infection.
However, about 100 people die from the disease each year in the US.
In March, scientists sounded the alarm about a flesh-eating bacteria that could be present in every US state on the East Coast for the next 20 years.
According to researchers at the University of East Anglia in the UK, annual cases of Vibrio vulnificus could double by the 2040s due to warming of the oceans due to climate change.
They say climate change allows the bacteria to survive in waters farther north than ever, while rising sea levels could push the organism further inland.
Last July, Roger Pickney, 44, died after eating a “one in a billion” bad oyster at the Rustin Inn Crabhouse in Fort Lauderdale.
Roger Pinckney (right), 44, died after eating a “one in a billion” bad oyster at the Rustin Inn Crabhouse in Fort Lauderdale while celebrating his birthday. He underwent a series of emergency surgeries and a double amputation before passing away on July 31, 2022.
Rodney Jackson (pictured), 55, fell ill after contracting the bacteria from oysters he bought at a market in Pensacola, Florida, and later died in hospital on August 9, 2022. He was a beloved Air Force veteran who was a spent much of his life working in banking
Just weeks later, an Air Force veteran became the second man to die in a short time in Florida from a bacterial infection after eating raw Louisiana oysters.
Rodney Jackson, 55, fell ill after contracting the bacteria from oysters he bought at a market in Pensacola and later died in hospital on Aug. 9.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Vibrio bacteria don’t make an oyster look, smell, or taste any different.
The agency said about 80,000 people get vibriosis in the US each year.