PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN
Infection with O157:H7 is zoonotic, and the infection is most often contracted from consumption of contaminated food. Cattle are the main reservoir, but small ruminants and pigs are also known to carry E.
coli O157:H7. Game (roe deer, red deer, fallow deer) may be carriers and a potential source of human pathogenic STEC and EHEC strains. In Germany, 51.8% of wildlife ruminants carried STEC, and similar rates were reported from Spanish deer. Non-O157 STEC carriage rates in Belgian and German deer meat varied from 10% to 22%. Hunters and people who handle game should be aware of the contamination risk. Proper hygiene is recommended in order to minimize the risk of EHEC and STEC food- borne infection in humans(4,13). O157 infections in humans have also been associated with visits to wildlife parks, farms and petting zoos. In England an outbreak of E. coli O157 affected ten children and two adults who visited an animal collection open to the public; four were hospitalized but all recovered. Microbiological investigations following a meeting of an outbreak control team (OCT) identified the organism in 17 of 29 (59%) wild rabbit faecal samples from around the site, suggesting that contact with wild rabbit faeces can be a risk factor for acquiring human infection(23). Guidance for owners and employees of petting zoos has been written with general advice on pathogens likely to be present in the petting zoo environment and steps to be taken to minimize the risk of human infection (e.g. the Australian ‘ Petting Zoo Infection Control Guideline’, and the Dutch ‘Hygiene Code for Petting Zoos’)(24). There are also recent guidelines for UK zoos(24). Whether E. albertii can be transmitted from animals to humans is unknown; however, a zoonotic potential has been suggested(3).REFERENCES
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