A rare and mysterious blood infection called the Elizabethkingia bacteria is now spreading in Wisconsin. It is reported to spread first in Michigan; the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services confirmed it in a statement.
An older adult woman who had a preexisting health condition that recently died had tested positive for the blood infection. Elizabethkingia infection is usually found in the environment; however, it rarely infects humans, as reported by Microcap Magazine.
The case of the blood infection in Wisconsin counts 54 and is believed to cause the death of 17 of them. Michigan and Wisconsin are now working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Elizabethkingia infection is often found in river water, reservoirs and soil. Only patients with compromised immune system are more likely to get infected. Person with this blood infection will suffer from cellulitis (a bacterial skin infection), shortness of breath, fever, and chills. Early diagnosis is crucial to treat the blood infection as it can resist antibiotics.
"The majority of patients acquiring this infection are over the age of 65, and all patients have a history of at least one underlying serious illness," the Wisconsin agency said in a statement.
"Michigan has worked closely with the CDC and Wisconsin Health Department to alert our provider community about the Wisconsin outbreak and to ensure early recognition of potential cases in our state," Dr. Eden Wells, chief medical executive of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, said in a statement, KFOR reported.
Tom Skinner, CDC spokesperson said that the case of the infection in Michigan is not surprising. Health departments across the United States were advised to watch out for the Elizabethkingia infection after the Wisconsin outbreak.
"The work is labor-intensive. Lots of people are working around the clock, a very wide net has been cast looking at lots of different possibilities," Skinner said.
