10 Illinois Residents Infected with Elizabethkingia Bacteria

Recent tests show 10 Illinois residents have been diagnosed with infections caused by the bacteria Elizabethkingia anophelis, though the strain involved in these cases is different from the one causing an outbreak in Wisconsin.

Six of the 10 people with confirmed cases have died, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, but because the bacteria preys on people with preexisting medical conditions, officials don't know if the infections caused the deaths.

• See also: Elizabethkingia: 5 Things We Know and a Few We Don't

The department sent samples collected from Illinois hospitals and laboratories to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which confirmed the 10 cases, the department reports.

“Although this strain of Elizabethkingia is different than the one seen in the Wisconsin outbreak, our investigatory methods remain the same and we continue to work with the CDC and our local health departments to investigate this cluster of cases and develop ways to prevent additional infections,” said IDPH director Nirav D. Shah in a statement.

Only one person in Illinois, a 52-year-old Lake Villa woman who died, has been found to have the same Elizabethkingia strain associated with the Wisconsin outbreak. In Wisconsin, there have been 59 confirmed cases of that strain to date, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, and 18 of those people with confirmed cases have died.

• See also: Dead Illinois Resident Had Same Bacterial Infection as Wisconsin Outbreak

Illinois hospitals, health care providers and laboratories have been on alert because of the Wisconsin cases, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, and they have been asked to report all cases of the infection since Jan. 1, 2014, and to save specimens for testing.

Health officials are working to find a connection among the infected people. Most of the infections in Illinois have been in the bloodstreams of patients older than 65 who had weakened immune systems.

The bacteria is common in soil, water sources and in the environment, and it doesn't usually make people sick.

Symptoms of Elizabethkingia are similar to other infections and can include fever, shortness of breath, chills or cellulitis. It is not contagious.

Health officials advise following good health practices such as washing your hands frequently.

Photo courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC disease detectives collect samples looking for the source of Elizabethkingia anophelis.