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Table 3 Clusters identified by MLVA typing with confirmed epidemiological links

From: Improving resolution of public health surveillance for human Salmonella entericaserovar Typhimurium infection: 3 years of prospective multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA)

Cluster Number

Time

MLVA type [24]** (Phage type)

Sources of infection identified by epidemiological investigations

1

Oct 2007

4-16-13-0-517 (DT170)

Contaminated chicken meat from a sushi shop

2

Oct-Nov 2007

3-10-8-9-523 (DT44)

Use of raw eggs (cheesecake) at a common bakery, interstate clusters in NSW, Victoria and South Australia

3*

Nov 2007

3-11-10-8-523 (DTU302, U290)

Raw egg milkshake consumed by three siblings

7

Nov 2007

3-20-17-11-523 (DT9)

Meal prepared and cooked at home function (deep-fried ice cream)

4

Jan-March 2008

3-9-8-12-523 (DT170)

Raw eggs in custard for a cake at private party consumed by some cases

5

Feb-March 2008

3-17-16-13-523 (DT126)

Linked to local egg supplier, confirmed by environmental sampling

6

May 2008

3-12-10-12-523 (U290)

Restaurant outbreak, environmental samples from restaurant confirmed the link.

8

Sept-Oct 2008

3-10-14-11-496 (DT9)

Linked to eating mousse made with raw eggs

9

Nov 2008

3-9-7-13-523 (DT170)

Interviews indicated restaurant outbreak. Cross- contamination of pesto suspected.

10

Nov 2008

3-17-16-13-523 (DT126)

Linked to raw eggs contamination

11

March 2009

3-9-7-12-523 (DT170)

Fried ice cream positive and raw beef positive. Chopping board swabs and salad samples were positive for STM. One point source outbreak in the middle of endemic activity of PT170

12*

Feb-April 2009

3-9-8-12-523 (DT170)

Restaurant related outbreak

13*

March-April 2010

3-9-7-12-523 (DT170)

Restaurant related outbreak. Epi link confirmed by positive cultures from the chef and his family.

14

June 2010

3-9-7-14-523 (16 cases)

3-9-7-15-523 (15 cases) (DT170)

Cases from narrow geographic area. Interviews indicated kebab store outbreak, later confirmed by detection of undistinguishable STM MLVA type in chicken, tabouli and hummus.

15*

Aug 2010

3-9-7-13-523 (DT170)

Human cases from narrow geographic area. Epidemiological link to deep-fried ice cream made with raw eggs. Farm inspection not conducted.

  1. * Public health investigation was initiated by STM MLVA cluster alerts
  2. ** The STTR3 fragment size of the last allele in MLVA profile can be translated into the number-of-repeat-nomenclature [25], i.e. 496 = 0112, 517 = 0311, 523 = 0212