Chronologie des EHEC O104:H4 Ausbruchsgeschehens bis zur Gründung der länderübergreifenden Task Force EHEC aus Sicht der Lebensmittelüberwachung in Schleswig-Holstein am Beispiel des Kreises Schleswig-Flensburg

• Published in: Journal für Verbraucherschutz und Lebensmittelsicherheit 2011, Vol.6 (4), p.497-501
• Main Authors: Hänel, Christoph-Michael, Jüptner, Corinna, Lorenz, Karen, Seulen, Peter, Sturm, Klaus-Dietrich, Börner, Holger-Jürgen
• Format: Article
• Language: ger
• Subjects: bacterial contamination; bacterial infections; consumer protection; diarrhea; disease outbreaks; enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli; food contamination; food inspection; hemolytic uremic syndrome; information exchange; plant-based foods; public health
• ISSN: 1661-5751; 1661-5867

The article describes the chronology of events of the recent EHEC O104:H4 outbreak from the perspective of food inspection in Schleswig-Holstein until the National Task Force EHEC was founded. Taking the district of Schleswig-Flensburg as an example, the collaboration and information exchange between health and food control authorities is described. The Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Areas of Schleswig-Holstein (MLUR) received the first information about clusters of disorders with symptoms of bloody diarrhoea and HUS from the districts around Hamburg and the city of Hamburg on 19 May 2011. On the same day, the veterinary services and the service for consumer protection in the district of Schleswig-Flensburg were informed about a situation comparable to the one in the environment of Hamburg. Due to this situation, official procedures were initiated to discover the origins of this food-associated outbreak - both at the state and county level and in collaboration with the health authorities. On 1 June 2011, an initial telephone conference was held between the responsible ministries and the food inspection and health authorities of the counties and cities in order to coordinate a joint action. On 3 June 2011, the National Task Force EHEC was founded at the Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) in Berlin. By founding the National Task Force EHEC, the coordination of the clearing process was passed over to the BVL two weeks after the public health authorities had knowledge of accumulated and cross-border cases. On 7 June 2011 an employee of the district Schleswig-Flensburg was sent to the Task Force EHEC in Berlin by the MLUR. The lesson to be learned as a result of the EHEC O104:H4 outbreak is that among the “dangerous foods” there are more plant-based foods than often assumed. In the future this must be much more taken into account.