A Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak has sickened 98 people across 17 states and sent 26 to the hospital, federal investigators reported, prompting a recall of more than 1.5 million dozen eggs. [1]
The eggs were traced to Midwest Poultry Services. Investigators found a strong link in the interviews they conducted: of 44 people questioned, 40, or 91 percent, said they had eaten eggs before falling ill. [1]
That is where the case gets more complicated. The Food and Drug Administration says eggs do not explain all of the illnesses in the outbreak. [1] The recall addresses the clearest identified source, yet the agency's caveat signals that at least some cases may trace to something the recall does not touch.
Salmonella Enteritidis causes diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps, and can be serious enough to require hospitalization, as it has been for 26 people in this outbreak. [1] For consumers, the practical step is straightforward: check whether eggs on hand fall under the Midwest Poultry Services recall and discard or return them. The unfinished part belongs to the investigators, who by the FDA's own account have not yet accounted for every case. [1]
