Texas man in his 30s dies from flesh-eating bacterial infection he caught from eating raw oysters
A Texas man in his 30s has died after eating raw oysters contaminated with a flesh-eating bacteria.
Local health officials said the man, who has not been named, contracted a Vibrio vulnificus infection after ingesting the bacteria that live in warm coastal waters while eating oysters.
Doctors say Vibrio infections are on the rise in the US, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issuing a warning this year. So far this year, at least twelve Americans have died from Vibrio infections.
Dr. Philip Keiser, of the Galveston County Health Department, who reported the fatality, said ABC13: ‘These infections, once they gain a foothold, can spread extremely quickly – like a fire.’
A Texas man in his 30s died after eating raw oysters contaminated with a deadly flesh-eating bacteria
The patient had liver disease and was taking immunosuppressants, which put him at high risk of becoming seriously ill from the infection.
Dr. Keizer said the province usually records five to 10 Vibrio infections per year and a death “every few years.”
It is not clear when the man died or where he purchased the raw oysters.
Vibrio vulnificus lives in warm coastal waters and can contaminate shellfish, such as oysters, if it enters them as they filter the surrounding water.
People can be exposed to the bacteria by eating infected seafood or swimming in contaminated water with an open cut or wound.
In cases where patients ingest the bacteria, Vibrio vulnificus is not broken down by stomach acid and can reach the small intestine.
Once there, it multiplies rapidly and attacks surrounding tissue.
The infection progresses rapidly and can lead to septic shock and death within days.
According to the CDC, approximately one in three patients diagnosed with Vibrio infection do not survive.
Patients who become infected with the bacteria through food will show symptoms within hours, including nausea, diarrhea, abdominal pain and vomiting.
As the infection progresses, they also experience high fever, chills and sepsis – the body’s extreme and potentially fatal response to an infection
Doctors treat a Vibrio vulnificus infection with antibiotics and, in some cases, with surgery to cut out infected tissue.
The Texas man was at least the twelfth person to die in the US this year from a Vibrio infection.
The map above shows where cases of Vibrio vulnificus were discovered in the United States between 2008 and 2018. The bacteria continues to advance further north amid rising sea temperatures.
Florida Department of Health is warning residents to be on the lookout for the carnivorous Vibrio vulnificus that could be lurking in floodwaters
Florida has reported eight fatalities this year, while one in New York and two in Connecticut have also been reported.
It was not clear whether the deaths in Florida and New York were due to eating shellfish contaminated with Vibrio vulnificus or swimming in open water.
In Connecticut – where three infections have been reported – at least one of the victims was exposed to the bacteria after swimming in the ocean.
Once confined to the Gulf of Mexico, the bacteria has now moved into new areas due to rising sea temperatures. Scientists fear Vibrio could reach every US coastal state by 2040.