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Campylobacter outbreak linked to obstacle adventure race
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An outbreak of Campylobacter coli infection among 22 people in Nevada was linked to swallowing of muddy surface water while participating in a long-distance obstacle adventure race on a cattle ranch in Beatty, Nev., according to an MMWR report.
The first reported cases were among three active-duty military members who presented to the ED at Mike O’Callaghan Federal Medical Center with fever, vomiting and hemorrhagic diarrhea from Oct. 10 to Oct. 12, 2012. All three of the patients had participated in the adventure race Oct. 6 and Oct. 7. The epidemiologic investigation identified 19 additional cases among other military and civilian personnel from the Nellis Air Force Base.
The mean time to illness was 3.3 days after exposure, and the most common symptoms included diarrhea, cramps, fever and nausea. Investigators from the public health department at Nellis Air Force Base conducted a case-control study that also included 24 health controls who had also participated in the race. The results indicated a significant association between illness and inadvertently swallowing muddy water that had been contaminated with cattle or swine feces.
This type of obstacle course is frequently marketed to military personnel, according to the report. The outbreak prompted the public health department at Nellis Air Force Base to educate the base’s population on the risk associated with these events.
“Primary and emergency care providers, as well as public health professionals, should be aware that obstacle adventure race events could pose a heightened risk for outbreaks from inadvertent ingestion of contaminated water or mud,” the investigators wrote. “Warning participants in outdoor sporting events who might be exposed to fecally contaminated water or slurry that potentially serious diarrheal disease can result if ingested, even inadvertently, could reduce exposures to these pathogens.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant disclosures.
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