Health officials in Kingston, Ont., are reporting an outbreak of an intestinal illness that has affected dozens of residents recently, but they are having difficulty pinpointing the source.
Cryptosporidiosis is caused by coming into contact with the tiny parasite cryptosporidium. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, fever and particularly diarrhea.
Southeast Public Health (SEPH) reports it has looked into 114 cases over the past nine weeks.
Dr. Ethan Toumishey, SEPH’s deputy medical officer of health, mentioned that these cases are much more concentrated than what’s usually seen.
“The common experience of [cryptosporidiosis] in Ontario is sporadic cases that people might be exposed to in more limited numbers,” Toumishey said. “So this is definitely a very significant signal that we’re seeing.. and trying to investigate to the best that we can.”
Toumishey noted that the investigation has focused on various water sources including Kingston’s water treatment plant, though the parasite can also enter through food.
“We’re going to keep trying to work as many angles as we can to determine [where this is coming from],” Toumishey said.
People who think they may have contracted the illness are encouraged to stay home while feeling unwell, wash their hands frequently and avoid pools, hot tubs and splash pads for two weeks after their diarrhea symptoms have gone away.
The health unit mentioned some individuals who get sick may not show any symptoms at all, while others could feel better for a while but then relapse until it clears out completely from their system.
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