PulseNet, the national molecular subtyping network for foodborne disease surveillance, was established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and several state health department laboratories to facilitate subtyping bacterial foodborne pathogens for epidemiologic purposes. PulseNet, which began in 1996 with 10 laboratories typing a single pathogen (Escherichia coli O157:H7), now inclu...

Foodborne infections with salmonella serovars S. enteritidis and S. typhimurium are a serious public health concern. After more than a decade of combating salmonella infections, this organism still represents an important cause of human disease. Recent studies estimate 80.3 million annual cases of foodborne disease related to salmonella worldwide. Within the European Union salmonella is the sec...

During 2009-2010, a total of 1,527 foodborne disease outbreaks were reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2013). However, in a 2011 CDC report, Scallan et al. estimated about 48 million people contract a foodborne illness annually in the United States. Public health officials are concerned with this under-reporting; thus, the purpose of this study was to identify why...

Foodborne pathogens are more likely to cause infection and to result in serious consequences in vulnerable people than in healthy adults. People with some increase in susceptibility may form nearly 20% of the population in the UK and the USA. Conditions leading to increased susceptibility are listed. The main factors leading to foodborne disease caused by major pathogens are outlined and exampl...

The public health challenges of foodborne diseases are changing as a result of newly identified pathogens and vehicles of transmission , changes in food production and distribution, and an apparent decline in food safety awareness. Response to these new challenges requires new surveillance strategies to monitor the incidence of human illness and provide data for developing effective prevention ...

S eptember is Food Safety Month, so this column provides the perfect op­ portunity to tell Journal of Environmen­ tal Health readers about an upcoming food safety meeting: the Integrated Foodborne Outbreak Response Management (InFORM) Meeting. Sponsored by several federal agen­ cies and national organizations, this meet­ ing emphasizes the integration of laborato­ rians, epidemiologists, and en...

BACKGROUND Burden of disease estimates, which combine mortality and morbidity into a single measure, are used increasingly for priority setting in disease control, prevention and surveillance. However, because there is no clear exclusion criterion for highly prevalent minimal disease in burden of disease studies its application may be restricted. The aim of this study was to apply a newly devel...

Foodborne pathogens cause >9 million illnesses annually. Food safety efforts address the entire food chain, but an essential strategy for preventing foodborne disease is educating consumers and food preparers. To better understand the epidemiology of foodborne disease and to direct prevention efforts, we examined incidence of Salmonella infection, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli infectio...

The Australian Government Department of Health established the OzFoodNet network in 2000 to collaborate nationally to investigate foodborne disease. In each Australian state and territory OzFoodNet epidemiologists investigate outbreaks of enteric infection. OzFoodNet conducts studies on the burden of illness and coordinates national investigations into outbreaks of foodborne disease. This quart...

In the past decade the complexity of foodborne pathogens, as well as their adaptability and ability to cause acute illness, and in some cases chronic (secondary) complications, have been newly appreciated. This overview examines long-term consequences of foodborne infections and intoxications to emphasize the need for more research and education.