This afternoon I received an alert from the CDC regarding shiga-toxin producing E. coli likely linked to romaine lettuce. The specific source of the tainted lettuce still isn't clear, which has led CDC to make the unusual recommendation for consumers to throw out all romaine lettuce they may have.
So far, a total of 50 individuals are known to have been infected in the outbreak, spread across the US (32 cases) and Canada (18). One case of hemolytic-uremic syndrome has occurred, but no fatalities known so far.
As you can see above, we've had a single case in Maryland. I don't know any details about that individual case.
Although the warning is all over the news, please warn the families in your practice to get rid of any romaine in the house, and clean any areas that were in contact with the lettuce. You can view the complete alert for more details which include 5 steps on how to clean the refrigerator.
How will the CDC "know" when all romaine is safe again? How can we ever be sure that the romaine is safe, considering the source of the E coli remains unknown?