Type F Infant Botulism: Investigation of Recent Clusters and Overview of This Exceedingly Rare Disease

Alison Laufer Halpin; Jessica M Khouri; Jessica R Payne; Jolene H Nakao; Alicia Cronquist; Nicholas Kalas; Marika Mohr; Matthew Osborne; Sharon O'Dell; Carolina Luquez; Karl C Klontz; Jeremy Sobel; Agam K Rao

doi:10.1093/cid/cix818

Type F Infant Botulism: Investigation of Recent Clusters and Overview of This Exceedingly Rare Disease

Clin Infect Dis. 2017 Dec 27;66(suppl_1):S92-S94. doi: 10.1093/cid/cix818.

Authors

Alison Laufer Halpin^{1

2}, Jessica M Khouri³, Jessica R Payne³, Jolene H Nakao^{1

2}, Alicia Cronquist⁴, Nicholas Kalas⁵, Marika Mohr⁶, Matthew Osborne⁷, Sharon O'Dell⁸, Carolina Luquez¹, Karl C Klontz⁹, Jeremy Sobel¹, Agam K Rao¹

Affiliations

¹ Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia.
² Scientific Education and Professional Development Program, Epidemic Intelligence Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia.
³ Infant Botulism Treatment and Prevention Program, California Department of Public Health, Richmond.
⁴ Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver.
⁵ Iowa Department of Public Health, Des Moines.
⁶ Ohio Department of Health, Columbus.
⁷ Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston.
⁸ Waynesboro-Augusta Health Department, Waynesboro, Virginia.
⁹ Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland.

PMID: 29293930
DOI: 10.1093/cid/cix818

Abstract

From 1976 to 2016, neurotoxigenic Clostridium baratii type F caused 18 (<0.5%) reported US infant botulism cases. Six cases occurred during 2012-2013; no common source was identified. Type F infant botulism mostly occurs in very young infants and typically presents more rapidly and severely than illness caused by types A and B botulinum neurotoxin.

Keywords: Clostridium baratii; botulinum toxin; clinical spectrum; infant botulism; molecular epidemiology.

Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America 2017. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

MeSH terms

Botulism / epidemiology*
Clostridium botulinum type F*
Female
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Male
Rare Diseases / epidemiology*
Rare Diseases / microbiology*
United States / epidemiology