Concerns over an intestinal infection that is resistant to medication has caused a "serious public health" alert to be issued in the United States. Diarrhoea, fever and stomach cramps are all symptoms of the shigella bacterial condition, which can result in a life-threatening blood infection in rare cases.
The US' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) made the warning following a spike an "extensively drug resistant" shigellosis. They have said that while there are limited antimicrobial treatments available for drug resistant strains, in mild cases good hydration can treat it, the Mirror reports.
The warning stated: “Shigella bacteria are transmitted by the fecal-oral route, directly through person-to-person contact including sexual contact, and indirectly through contaminated food, water, and other routes. Shigella bacteria are easily transmitted because of the low infectious dose (as few as 10–100 organisms), and outbreaks tend to occur among people in close-contact settings [two–six].”
