(Video Inc.)Warm Water Sparks Flesh-Eating Disease Warning in Florida

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Warm Water Sparks Flesh-Eating Disease Warning in Florida

By KATIE MOISSE

PHOTO: Crescent Beach in Sarasota, Fla. is pictured in this file photo.
Crescent Beach in Sarasota, Fla. is pictured in this file photo. Getty ImagesNEXT VIDEO
Florida Officials Warn About Deadly Bacteria In Water

Florida health officials are warning beachgoers about a seawater bacterium that can invade cuts and scrapes to cause flesh-eating disease.

Vibrio vulnificus –- a cousin of the bacterium that causes Cholera –- thrives in warm saltwater, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If ingested, it can cause stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhea. But it can also infect open wounds and lead to “skin breakdown and ulceration,” according to the CDC.

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“Since it is naturally found in warm marine waters, people with open wounds can be exposed to Vibrio vulnificus through direct contact with seawater,” the Florida Department of Health said in a statement.

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The infection can also be transmitted through eating or handling contaminated oysters and other shellfish, according to the CDC.

PHOTO: A grouping of Vibrio vulnificus bacteria is pictured in this micrograph.Getty Images
PHOTO: A grouping of Vibrio vulnificus bacteria is pictured in this micrograph.
At least 11 Floridians have contracted Vibrio vulnificus so far this year and two have died, according to the most recent state data. In 2013, 41 people were infected and 11 died. The proportion of skin and gastrointestinal infections in Florida is unclear, but a CDC spokesman said the ratio tends to be about 1-to-1…..more here

 

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