More than 100 people have fallen sick in France as part of a Salmonella outbreak linked to eggs.
Surveillance of salmonellosis and the identification of common sources by Santé publique France is based on mandatory reporting of outbreaks, as well as the detection of genomic clusters identified by the National Reference Center for Salmonella (CNR).
According to an article in Médecine et Maladies Infectieuses Formation, in November 2024, health officials in the Île-de-France region were notified of a cluster of 50 cases of Salmonella Enteritidis.
As of Feb. 10 this year 103 cases of Salmonella Enteritidis had been identified by the CNR. Santé publique France is yet to respond to a request from Food Safety News for an update.
Outbreak strains were isolated between Aug. 9, 2024, and Jan. 10, 2025. The median age of patients is 23, and 95 live in the Île-de-France region. A total of 43 patients were interviewed. Twenty-five people were hospitalized and four required intensive care treatment.
Eggs suspicion
Five patients were from outbreaks linked to three different restaurants and had consumed egg products. Of the 38 other cases interviewed, four had also consumed egg products from the same restaurants, and 29 patients reported purchasing eggs, from different locations and without identifiable brands.
A Salmonella strain isolated from mayonnaise collected from one of the restaurants was identified by the National Reference Laboratory for Salmonella as belonging to the cluster.
Researchers said the outbreak is the largest ever reported in the Île-de-France region in terms of number of patients, duration, and severity.
Eggs are the suspected source but the exact origin has not yet been identified.
In 2023, France reported 11,848 Salmonella infections and 143 outbreaks.
Earlier this year, Belgium reported a Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak traced to eggs. Of the 67 patients, 37 were women and 30 were men. Patients ranged in age from under 10 to older than 65.
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