The International Journal of Infectious Diseases recently published “Outbreaks of Foodborne Salmonella Enteritidis in The United States 1990–2015: Epidemiologic and Spatial-temporal Trends Analyses," in the Journal's February issue. 

The Michigan team of researchers found that Salmonella Enteritidis was most commonly found in egg-based dishes, making up 24 percent of the study, followed by other implicated food items of meat (11 percent). Vegetables came in at 8 percent, chicken items also at 8 percent, dairy items at 5 percent, and bakery items at 1 percent, in the U.S. 

Out of the total number of S. Enteritidis outbreaks (1,144), 35 percent occurred in the northeastern U.S., followed by the South at 22 percent; western region at 22 percent; and Midwest at 21 percent. 

The study team included four authors from Michigan State University, as well as one researcher from the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad, Pakistan. 

The objective of the study was to assess the roles of eggs and other foods as risk factors associated with S. Enteritidis outbreaks, and to attempt to address the endemicity of S. Enteritidis infection in the U.S. 

The data was retrieved and analyzed from all S. Enteritidis outbreaks reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1990 to 2015. 

Other takeaways from the study included:

• Special food regulations and precautions should be implemented to prevent foodborne S. Enteritidis infections in the summer season.
• Besides restaurants, there is a timely need for public education to reduce S. Enteritidis infections in homes or private residences.
• Active disease surveillance should be enhanced to mitigate the increasing burden of S. Enteritidis infections in the country.