Seventh Listeria Death Linked To Prolactal Cheese
AUSTRIA - A seventh person has died after eating cheese made by Prolactal contaminated with Listeria, Austrian authorities confirmed on Wednesday.
26 February 2010
1 minute read
According to The Earth Times, the 57-year-old man from Lower Austria died at the end of December two days after being admitted to hospital.
The latest victim is the fifth Austrian fatality, with the other two being German.
Health authorities have struggled to link the listeriosis deaths to Prolactal's cheese, because the cases occurred only sporadically and the disease has a long incubation period.
The AGES food agency said that all infections occurred before Prolactal's tainted cheese was taken off supermarket shelves on January 23.
Including the fatal cases, 21 people in Austria became ill.
The disease, caused by listeria bacteria, is relatively rare, but results in death in up to 30 per cent of cases. Listeria can enter the human body through the eating of contaminated raw meat, fish or dairy products.
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