Parasite Outbreak Growing, Mostly Among Kids
Thu Aug 25, 5:43 AM ET
A potentially deadly disease is rapidly growing in Hamilton County, and it's hitting mostly pre-school children, News 5 reported.
After News 5 reported Tuesday on the cryptosporidium outbreak at a local YMCA pool, parents of sick kids and others with symptoms started calling the Health Department.
The Health Department is now investigating at least 24 cases ? three times the number of confirmed cases as of Tuesday. The cases involve 21 children under the age of 5.
A woman in her 40s is in the hospital and seven kids under 5 have been diagnosed with the parasite, which has been traced to the Powel Crosley YMCA pool in Springfield Township. Officials are mailing letters to every day care in Hamilton County to warn them that crypto is in the community.
Crypto will give you cramps and severe diarrhea that can last up to two weeks -- or even worse.
A severe outbreak in Milwaukee in 1993 killed 100 people when crypto spread into the water supply. About 400,000 people were infected.
The local water supply has been tested and given the all-clear, but health officials are worried that swimmers might have unknowingly spread the outbreak to other pools. The bug is spread by ingesting fecal matter.
The Hamilton County Health Department mailed letters to 320 pool operators, asking them to put up a "No Swimming" sign for eight hours and super-chlorinate the water.
The health department is trying to track the outbreak. If you were in the Powel Crosley pool after Aug. 1 and you've had diarrhea, call health officials at (513) 347-3273 between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. This number is not for general questions.
The best ways to avoid "crypto:"
- Wash your hands often.
- Avoid swimming.
Anyone who is infected can be contagious for up to two weeks. They are advised not to swim and not to work in day care or restaurant facilities during that time.
