Posted: July 31st, 2009 - 9:57pm
Source: Zanesville Times Recorder

ZANESVILLE -- The Zanesville-Muskingum County Health Department is continuing to wait on results from testing of individuals who may have transmitted shigella.
Health officials are investigating a shigella outbreak after two young children who attend Rufus Putnam Daycare tested positive for the infectious disease. One is a 2-year-old girl and the other is a 3-year-old girl.
"We've had two positive cultures of shigella bacteria. Both are children at a day-care center. There are 79 children at the center so we got concerned," said Vicki Whitacre, medical director of the health department.
This however, does not mean that the center is the source of the infection.
Whitacre said 15 people who had some connection with the children have reported some sort of diarrhea symptoms. All are being tested. In addition, she said since this is a food-borne illness all food preparers are being tested.
The food is prepared off site, Whitacre said, and those people also prepare food for other programs. None have displayed any symptoms, she said.
People with diarrhea of infectious or unknown cause are not permitted to attend a child-care center or work in a sensitive occupation and may return only after the diarrhea has ended.