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E. coli are a diverse group of bacteria that normally live in the intestines of humans and animals. Although most strains of these bacteria are harmless, some produce toxins that can make you sick and cause diarrhea (loose stool/poop) such as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC).
Anyone can get STEC infection. Young children and the elderly are more susceptible to develop serious infection, but healthy older children and young adults can also become seriously ill.
Shiga Toxin 1 (stx 1) and Shiga Toxin 2 (stx 2) producing E. coli (STEC) (E. coli O157 and non-O157 STEC) cause approximately 100,000 illnesses, 3,000 hospitalizations, and 90 deaths annually in the United States. The ability of non-O157 strains to cause disease is related to production of toxins, stx 1 and stx 2. Non-O157 stx 1 and stx 2 toxins are very similar to those produced by the O157 STEC; therefore, non-O157 STEC strains cause a similar range of illness severity to O157 STEC, and can result in the same complications.
Symptoms usually include severe abdominal cramps, diarrhea (progressing to bloody), vomiting, and moderate (< 101* F/38.5* C) fever. Sources of infection include handling of ruminants (cattle, goats, sheep, deer, elk, etc.), consumption of raw or unpasteurized milk, soft unpasteurized cheeses, unpasteurized apple cider, undercooked meat, and contaminated water. Incubation period varies with serotypes from 10 hours-6 days. Oral rehydration therapy is recommended to prevent dehydration. Antibiotics, natural antimicrobial agents and anti-motility agents are contraindicated and increase the risk of disease progression to hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).
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Acinetobacter junii, Actinobacteria, Actinomycetales, Adenovirus F40/41, Akkermansia muciniphila, Alistipes onderdonkii, Alistipes spp., Ascaris lumbricoides, Bacilli Class, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacteroides fragilis, Bacteroides pectinophilus, Bacteroides spp., Bacteroides spp. & Prevotella spp., Bacteroides stercoris, Bacteroides zoogleoformans, Balantidium coli, Bifidobacterium spp., Blastocystis spp., Campylobacter (C. jejuni, C. coli and C. lari), Capillaria hepatica, Capillaria philippinensis, Carbohydrates, Catenibacterium mitsuokai, Charcot-Leyden Crystals, Chilomastix mesnili, Citrobacter farmeri / amalonaticus, Citrobacter freundii complex, Clonorchis sinensis, Clostridia Class, Clostridioides difficile (Toxin A/B), Clostridium L2-50, Clostridium methylpentosum, Color, Consistency, Coprobacillus cateniformis, Cryptosporidium (C. parvum and C. hominis), Dialister invisus, Dialister invisus & Megasphaera micronuciformis, Dientamoeba fragilis, Diphyllobothrium latum, Dipylidium caninum, Dorea spp., Elastase, Endolimax nana, Entamoeba coli, Entamoeba hartmanni, Entamoeba histolytica, Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar, Entamoeba polecki, Enterobacter cloacae complex, Enterobacteriaceae, Enterobius vermicularis, Enteromonas hominis, Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) lt/st, Escherichia coli O157, Escherichia spp., Eubacterium biforme, Eubacterium hallii, Eubacterium rectale, Eubacterium siraeum, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Fasciola hepatica/Fasciolopsis buski, Fat Stain, Firmicutes, Giardia duodenalis, Giardia duodenalis (AKA intestinalis & lamblia), Heterophyes heterophyes, Hookworm, Hymenolepis diminuta, Hymenolepis nana, Iodamoeba bütschlii, Isospora belli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella pneumoniae/variicola, Lachnospiraceae, Lactobacillus family, Lactobacillus ruminis & Pediococcus acidilactici, Lactobacillus spp., Lactococcus garvieae, Mucus, Muscle fibers, Mycoplasma hominis, Norovirus GI/GII, Occult Blood, Parabacteroides johnsonii, Parabacteroides spp., Paragonimus westermani, Pentatrichomonas hominis, Phascolarctobacterium spp., Pollen, Proteobacteria, RBC, Retortamonas intestinalis, Rotavirus A, Rothia dentocariosa, Rothia mucilaginosa, Ruminococcus albus & R. bromii, Ruminococcus gnavus, Salmonella spp., Secretory IgA, Shiga-like toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) stx1/stx2, Shigella (S. boydii, S. sonnei, S. flexneri & S. dysenteriae), Streptococcus agalactiae & Eubacterium rectale, Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus parasanguinis, Streptococcus salivarius, Streptococcus salivarius ssp., Streptococcus salivarius ssp. thermophilus, Streptococcus salivarius ssp. thermophilus & S. sanguinis, Streptococcus spp., Strongyloides stercoralis, Taenia, Trichuris trichiura, Vegetable fibers, Veillonella spp., Vibrio cholerae, WBC, Yeast