Notes from the Field: Clostridium perfringens Gastroenteritis Outbreak Associated with a Catered Lunch - North Carolina, November 2015.

During November 2015, the North Carolina Division of Public Health was notified by the Pitt County Health Department (PCHD) that approximately 40 persons who attended a catered company Thanksgiving lunch the previous day were ill with diarrhea and abdominal pain. The North Carolina Division of Public Health and PCHD worked together to investigate the source of illness and implement control measures. Within hours of notification, investigators developed and distributed an online survey to all lunch attendees regarding symptoms and foods consumed and initiated a cohort study. A case of illness was defined as abdominal pain or diarrhea in a lunch attendee with illness onset <24 hours after the event. Risk ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for all menu items. Among 80 attendees, 58 (73%) completed the survey, including 44 respondents (76%) who reported illnesses meeting the case definition; among these, 41 (93%) reported diarrhea, and 40 (91%) reported abdominal pain. There were no hospitalizations. Symptom onset began a median of 13 hours after lunch (range = 1-22 hours). Risk for illness among persons who ate turkey or stuffing (38 of 44; 86%), which were plated and served together, was significantly higher than risk for illness among those who did not eat turkey or stuffing (six of 14; 43%) (RR = 2.02; 95% CI = 1.09-3.73).

An outbreak of norovirus gastroenteritis associated with wedding cakes.

We sought to determine the source of a norovirus outbreak among attendees of 46 weddings taking place during a single weekend. Norovirus-compatible illness was experienced by 332 (39%) of wedding guests surveyed; the outbreak affected up to 2700 persons. Illness was associated with eating wedding cake provided by a bakery common to the weddings (adjusted RR 4.5, P<0.001). A cake requiring direct hand contact during its preparation accounted for the majority of illness. At least two bakery employees experienced norovirus-compatible illness during the week preceding the weddings. Identical sequence types of norovirus were detected in stool specimens submitted by two wedding guests, a wedding hall employee, and one of the ill bakery employees. It is likely that one or more food workers at the bakery contaminated the wedding cakes through direct and indirect contact. These findings reinforce the necessity of proper food-handling practices and of policies that discourage food handlers from working while ill.