ANYONE with diarrhoea and vomiting has been told to stay at home, as experts warn E. coli cases linked to a "nationally distributed food item" are likely to rise. An outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E.
coli (STEC) has sickened over 100 people across the UK and hospitalised 37. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) warned that cases of the illness - which is often spread through contaminated food - will probably continue multiplying. "Typically, we see around 1,500 cases of STEC over a full year," it said in a health alert about the outbreak.
"Numbers of confirmed cases associated with this outbreak are expected to rise as further samples undergo whole genome sequencing." Dr Will Welfare, strategic response director at the UKHSA, also told Sky News infections are "likely to rise". He added: "We expect to see further confirmed cases as we process more samples.
" As of June 4, there there have been 113 confirmed cases associated with this outbreak of STEC O145 in the UK. All of them have been reported since May 25, with 81 recorded in England , 18 in Wales , 13 in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland . Though the majority of people struck down have been young adults, children as young as two have been affected.
Around 37 people have been raced to hospital, all of them in England. It's prompted health officials to warn that anyone experiencing symptoms typical of STEC should stay at home until they have abated to avoid spreading the illness. Jim McMenamin, head of health protecti.
