NEWS 25 WEHT Evansville, Henderson, OwensboroMore Shigella Confirmed In Daviess Co., KY
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story by Corey Allan
DAVIESS CO., KY - The Green River District Health Department is confirming 30 cases of the bacteria illness called Shigella in Daviess County. Now, the Kentucky Department of Public Health is getting involved.
"We haven't seen anything like this in a while," said GRDHD Regional Epidemiologist Janie Cambron.
NEWS 25 was the first to report health officials were investigating cases of Shigella in Daviess County. Since last Thursday, the number of confirmed cases jumped from 15 to 30. Health officials say none however stem from this past weekend's Bar-B-Q fest where extra hand sanitizer were distributed.
"Not at this time. The additional cases we've seen have been associated with other cases we've had," said Cambron. "They've been epidemiologically linked."
Two other counties in the state are also reporting high numbers of Shigella. Prompting the state to become part of the investigation.
"We have a conference call set up with the state health department for tomorrow. We're going to talk about whether these cases are possibly linked. At this point in time we do not believe they are linked," said Cambron.
Of the 30 confirmed cases in Daviess County, 27 are with kids ages 13 and younger. Cambron says she's talked with many concerned parents asking if their kids should stay home. If they attend a childcare center, they must be symptom free for 24 hours before returning.
"The child care centers are a little bit different situation, and we are able to do exclusions there. But the schools, that's left up to the parents," said Cambron. "You may have an older child that is cognizant in washing and how it's spread. In the younger children, you just don't have that establishment to where they know what's expected."
Health officials urge parents not to panic, but to remember to just practice good hygiene.
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