Outbreak of acute gastroenteritis in an air force base in Western Greece

BACKGROUND: On the 20(th )September 2005, soldiers and staff at the Air Force base in Western Greece experienced an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis. The purpose of this study was to identify the agent and the source of the outbreak in order to develop control measures and to avoid similar outbreaks in the future. METHODS: A case-control analytical approach was employed with 100 randomly selected cases and 66 controls. Patients completed standardized questionnaires, odds ratios were calculated and statistical significance was determined using χ(2 )test. In addition, to identify the source of the infection, we performed bacteriological examination of food samples (included raw beef, cooked minced meat, grated cheese and grated cheese in sealed package) collected from the cuisine of the military unit. RESULTS: More than 600 out of the 1,050 individuals who ate lunch that day, became ill. The overall attack rate, as the military doctor of the unit estimated it, was at least 60%. The overall odds ratio of gastroenteritis among those who had lunch was 370 (95% CI: 48–7700) as compared to those who didn't eat lunch. Among the symptoms the most prominent were watery diarrhoea (96%) and abdominal pain (73%). The mean incubation period was 9 h and the median duration of the symptoms was 21 h. In the bacteriological examination, Staphylococcus aureus was detected in a sample of raw beef (2,000 cfu per g) and in two samples of grated cheese; leftover cheese from lunch (7,800 cfu per g) and an unopened package purchased from the market (3,000 cfu per g). CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that the aetiological agent of this outbreak was S. aureus. The food vehicle was the grated cheese, which was mixed with the beef and served for lunch in the military unit. This outbreak highlights the capacity of enterotoxin-producing bacteria to cause short term, moderately-severe illness in a young and healthy population. It underscores the need for proper food handling practices and reinforces the public health importance of timely notification of such outbreaks

Composition, viscosity and solubility of saleps from twenty different orchid (Orchidaceae) species

The quality of salep depends on its chemical composition, especially its glucomannan content, which varies according to the species. Saleps from 20 different orchid species collected from various regions in Turkey were analyzed for dry matter, ash, protein, glucomannan and starch contents. Moreover, viscosity and solubility of these saleps (1% w/v) in water and milk with different sucrose levels (15-25% w/v) were investigated. Starch and glucomannan contents of the species were found between 4.58-43.98 and 7.84-48.54%, respectively. Saleps obtained from Dactylorhizaromana ssp. georgica, Orchis tridentata and Serapiasvomeracea ssp. vomeracea species were identified as the species that contained the highest glucomannan content (42-48%) which could provide the highest viscosity in water and milk solutions. Additionally, despite having relatively lower glucomannan and starch content (36 and 35%), the water solution made with salep from Himantoglossum affine exhibited high viscosity and suggested that a synergistic effect existed between starch and glucomannan. Saleps from nine orchid species contained more than 40% glucomannan but only three of them exhibited good thickening properties and can provide ideal viscosity in water and milk with the addition of sucrose (658-690 cP)