3 more bacterial cases reported

Two children who were diagnosed earlier with a related kidney disease are in "extremely critical" condition.

By Christopher Sherman | Sentinel Staff Writer
March 29, 2005

Three more Central Florida children are suffering from the serious bacterial disease linked to two area fairs, Florida Hospital officials said today. And two children who were diagnosed earlier with a related kidney disease are in “extremely critical” condition.

One child is on a ventilator, and both children are on kidney dialysis machines, which cleanse the blood when a person’s kidneys fail.

The three new cases were identified as 18-month-old twins and an older sibling, all of whom tested positive for the E. coli O157:H7 bacteria after visiting the Central Florida Fair, said Dr. Mehul Dixit, a pediatric nephrologist with Florida Hospital Orlando. All three were admitted to the hospital Monday night.

Those children are being monitored closely for signs of hemolytic uremic syndrome, a kidney ailment developed by about 8 percent of those infected with that particular strain of E. coli.

The state Department of Health listed 17 confirmed cases today, three more than the day before, but it was not immediately clear if those included the new cases at Florida Hospital Orlando. The confirmed cases have diarrhea of varying severity, have recently attended a Florida Fair or Festival and have tested positive for E. coli O157:H7 and/or been diagnosed with HUS.