with Streptococcus suis
have been reported in a cluster in Viet Nam, plus one
apparently-isolated case in China. This is not the first
outbreak of the pig-borne illness. A larger
outbreak occurred in 2005 in Sichuan, China. In
2005, there were 205 reported cases, with 36 fatalities.
Earlier, a 1998 outbreak involved 14 deaths out of 25
reported human cases. Cases have been recorded dating back to
the 1960’s. No cases have been reported in the USA or Canada,
but it has been
alleged that this may be because labs here don’t look for it
and probably would misidentify it.
Streptococcus suis can cause a nasty illness.
Initial symptoms are nonspecific: high fever, malaise,
nausea, vomiting. This can progress to bacterial meningitis, with symptoms of
neck stiffness, photophobia, and headache. The meningitis can cause
hearing loss. It can lead to impaired level of consciousness, coma, and
death. Other complications can include septic
arthritis or toxic
shock syndrome. The incubation period could be as
short as a few hours, or as long as a few days.
Most cases are due to handling of infected pork. Infection
can be spread through skin injuries or contact with mucous membranes,
If that is not enough detail, Dr.
Smith has a more thorough
review at Aetiology. Her main
reference, by the way, is PLOS Medicine: Streptococcal
Toxic Shock Syndrome Caused by Streptococcus
The accompanying commentary, Invasive
Disease and Toxic Shock due to Zoonotic Streptococcus suis:
Infection in the East?, concludes that S.
suis is a serious problem with the potential for recurrent
outbreaks with multiple human fatalities, and for serious economic