Salmonella in the Caribbean.
Kevin Ramoutar
Southern New Hampshire University
IHP-330
Professor, Ashley Ithal
May 29, 2021
Salmonella in the Caribbean
salmonella is a bacteria that is spread by uncook food products, like eggs and meat. A
person who ingest the bacteria usually found in fecal matter may experience headache,
abdominal pain, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, and sometimes vomiting. Death can
occur in more serious cases. Usually, a person can feel better after one week and do not
necessarily need antibiotics, but is an option for treatment.
Salmonella can be easily prevented by simply washing all meat products and cook
thoroughly. In addition, it is recommended to avoid using raw eggs, but if needed, you should
wash the eggs thoroughly and clean your hands often in between preparation.
Risk Factors
The risk factors that was associated with the outbreak in the Caribbean, were from eggs.
People who used raw eggs to prepare certain dishes like eggnog, cake batter and punch a creme
(A creamy alcohol drink) were at high risk for becoming infected with salmonella
Other risk factor is farm or pet animals. It is understood that farm and pets can carry the
salmonella bacteria on their fur or feathers. But this is not limited, turtles, frogs and snakes are
also known to transmit the bacteria. The CDC claimed within the first six months of the year
2017, 790 reported cases of salmonella came from backyard chicken (Iannelli, 2019)
Mode of Transmission
The mode of transmission with the outbreak in the Caribbean was directly due to the
eating or drinking the food that was prepared with raw or undercooked eggs. The farm eggs outer
shell was contaminated with feces and during preparation, the eggs was not washed, this then
cause the person to become ill after eating the drinking the food.
"An estimated 94% of salmonellosis is transmitted by food. Humans usually become
infected by eating foods contaminated with feces from an infected animal. As a result, implicated
foods are often of animal origin such as beef, poultry, milk, and eggs" (CDC, 2013, para.10).
Incidence and Prevalence
"From 1995-97, 257 laboratory-confirmed cases of S. Enteritidis infection were reported
in Trinidad and Tobago. Approximately, 86 cases were reported each year for an annual
incidence of 6.8 per 100,000 population. In general, the geographic distribution of patients with
S. Enteritidis infection reflected population distributions on the two islands. The largest numbers
of cases were reported from the most populous counties of St. George and Victoria. An average
of 4 people died each year from salmonella infection. A similar proportion of S. Enteritidis
infections occurred among males (48%) and females (52%). However, the distribution of cases
varied by age group (Figure 4) and month of diagnosis (Figure 5). Figure 4. Laboratory-
confirmed cases of Salmonella Enteritidis (per 100,000 population) by age group and year of
diagnosis, Trinidad and Tobago, 1995-1997" (CDC, 2016, p.10)
Incidence Calculation
1988- 51/1,265,000 x 100,000 = 4.03