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Biomedical subjects

J C Sharp

Publications and source records attributed to J C Sharp.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Food poisoning in hospitals in Scotland, 1978-87.

During the 10-year period 1978-87 there were 48 outbreaks of food poisoning in Scottish hospitals affecting a total of 2287 persons of whom 12 died. This compared with 50 outbreaks during the previous 5 years (1973-77) when over 1500 persons and 7 deaths were recorded. Although the incidence of outbreaks has decreased the average number of persons affected in outbreaks has increased. A marked reduction was seen in the incidence of outbreaks due to Clostridium perfringens, in contrast to foodborne salmonellosis which remains a problem. Thirty-four hospitals, of which 10 reported two or more outbreaks, were involved. The type of hospitals most frequently affected were general (14), psychiatric (13), geriatric (9) and hospitals for the mentally subnormal (7). Meat, including poultry meat, was incriminated in over 90% of outbreaks where a food vehicle was identified. In modern or re-equipped kitchens cooking in advance with subsequent reheating is being progressively discontinued as more food is being cooked on the day of consumption, a practice which may readily explain the decreasing incidence of outbreaks due to Cl. perfringens. Bacterial cross-contamination from poultry-meat and other raw foods, compounded by inadequate temperature control, however, continues to be a problem in some hospitals. It is too early as yet to determine whether the removal of Crown immunity will have any effect on the future incidence of hospital 'food poisoning'.

Campylobacter↗
PubMed1988

Costing of a hospital-based outbreak of poultry-borne salmonellosis.

Poultry-borne salmonellosis is the most common form of foodborne infection in Scotland for which the vehicle can be identified, yet little is known about the costs imposed on society by this disease, or the costs of preventing it. The present study identifies and values the costs of a hospital based outbreak of poultry-borne salmonellosis. Account is taken of costs falling on individuals, the health services and society as a whole. Depending on assumptions made about the value of 'intangibles', the cost of the outbreak is estimated to be between pounds 200,000 and pounds 900,000.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Prevention of poultry-borne salmonellosis by irradiation: costs and benefits in Scotland.

Poultry-borne salmonellosis is the most common foodborne infection in Scotland for which the vehicle can be identified. The cost of the disease to society in terms of health service use, absence from work, morbidity, and mortality is substantial. The study estimates the total cost of poultry-borne salmonellosis in Scotland and compares it with the cost of a single preventive measure: the irradiation of poultry meat. The results suggest that the public health benefits exceed irradiation costs. This conclusion is, however, sensitive to assumptions made in the analysis, particularly those related to the cost of unreported cases of salmonellosis.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Surveillance programme for the control of foodborne infections and intoxications in Europe: the first 6 years' experience in Scotland, 1980-85.

In 1979 WHO recommended the establishment of a surveillance programme in Europe for foodborne infections and intoxications that incorporated an early warning system for incidents affecting more than one country as well as a routine reporting system to record details of outbreaks of foodborne disease. The Early Warning System was introduced in Scotland in July 1979 and the Routine Reporting System in January 1980. By the end of 1985, 23 European countries were participating in the programme.The introduction of the surveillance programme in Scotland permitted the formation of a standard national reporting system for foodborne infections and intoxications. During the 6 years from 1980 to 1985, the major features of the programme in Scotland have been the introduction of compulsory pasteurization of cows' milk, in 1983, with the consequent eradication of general outbreaks of milkborne salmonellosis; the emergence of poultry meat as the major food vehicle of infections; and the development of techniques for costing foodborne disease outbreaks.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Infections associated with milk and dairy products in Europe and North America, 1980-85.

Outbreaks of infection associated with milk and other dairy products in Europe and North America from 1980 to 1985 are reviewed. Salmonella spp. and Campylobacter spp. were the most commonly identified etiological agents, while other infections of animal origin, in particular listeriosis and yersiniosis, were increasingly reported. Most infections were attributed to untreated cows' milk or cheese, but also increasingly to contaminated "heat-treated" products. Heat-treatment is highly effective in controlling foodborne disease, but may be insufficient if not complemented by high standards of hygiene throughout production and processing. Large community outbreaks of salmonellosis, listeriosis, and yersiniosis in Canada, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the USA that were associated with contaminated "heat-treated" liquid milk, powdered milk, or cheese emphasize the vulnerability of dairy produce.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Salmonella in sewage effluent and the relationship to animal and human disease in the north of Scotland.

During the period July 1982 to December 1984, the presence of salmonella organisms was investigated at weekly intervals in the sewage system and abattoir effluent of a town in the north of Scotland. Three hundred and fifteen isolations, representing 37 different serotypes, were made which included 20 different Salmonella typhimurium phage types and four different S enteritidis phage types. Ten of the serotypes were isolated from livestock in the district during the survey as well as in the periods immediately before and after the survey. There were seven recorded incidents of human infection, involving four salmonella serotypes, only three of which were isolated concurrently from sewage.

Abattoirs↗
PubMed1985

Pasteurisation and the control of milkborne infection in Britain.

Infections carried in milk, particularly salmonellosis and campylobacter enteritis, have continued to feature in Great Britain in recent years. Less commonly reported infections included an outbreak in 1984 in England due to Streptococcus zooepidemicus, in which 12 people, eight of whom died, were admitted to hospital. The implementation of legislation in 1983 requiring heat treatment of cows' milk for sale to the public reduced the incidence of milkborne infection in Scotland compared with previous years and compared with England and Wales, where, without legislative control, outbreaks continue to occur. Until compulsory pasteurisation is introduced throughout Britain and dairy farming communities can be persuaded to drink only heat treated milk outbreaks of milkborne infection will continue.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Salmonellae in sewage sludge and abattoir effluent in south-east Scotland.

A survey into the prevalence of salmonella organisms in sewage in the Borders Region of South-east Scotland is described. A total of 317 isolates representing 34 different serotypes were made, of which only 5 serotypes appeared in animals, supporting the view that the spreading of sewage sludge on to pastureland presents little risk to livestock provided the recommended guidelines are followed. Nevertheless, Salmonella typhimurium phage type 12, identified in sewage, was also recovered from animals in incidents on 11 farms, including 4 which had received sludge from this source. A further 48 isolates (13 serotypes) were obtained from the parallel monitoring of abattoir effluents, indicating that the background level of salmonella infection in the animal population appears to be low in comparison to that in humans.

Abattoirs↗
PubMed1985

An epidemiological study of Salmonella montevideo by biotyping.

Among 622 cultures of Salmonella montevideo, 27 biotypes belonging to two biogroups were recognized. One biogroup (10di) was predominant in all animals in Scotland but only in sheep in England and Wales. The other (biogroup 2d) was responsible for almost all human, cattle and poultry infection in England and Wales, but only 24% of human infection in Scotland.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Campylobacter infection in urban and rural populations in Scotland.

A review of campylobacter infection in Scotland over five years (1978-82), during which 7808 human isolates were recorded (mean annual isolation rate of 30 per 100000), revealed differences in the epidemiology of the disease between rural and urban populations which were not apparent in the national data. The incidence of infection in the two rural areas studied was greatest in the early months of the year, whereas that in the two urban areas showed a third-quarter predominance. In both urban and rural populations, age-specific infection rates were highest in children less than 5 years old, but this trend was more pronounced in rural than urban populations. Conversely, secondary peaks in age-specific infection rates observed in young adults were more pronounced in the urban than rural populations. It is postulated that rural children were being infected by campylobacters at an early age by drinking contaminated raw milk which was not normally available to city residents. The lower incidence in adults in the rural populations is interpreted as indicating more widespread immunity, resulting from greater exposure to infection during childhood. The effect of compulsory heat treatment of milk sold in Scotland, introduced in August 1983, is currently being studied.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Fetal blood chromosome analysis: some new indications for prenatal karyotyping.

Prenatal karyotyping using stimulated fetal blood lymphocytes was undertaken in 170 pregnancies between 16 and 36 weeks gestation for the following reasons--mosaicism or marker chromosomes found in amniotic fluid culture; a family history of X-linked mental retardation with fragile Xq28; fetal abnormalities detected ultrasonographically; late booking or amniotic fluid culture failure in patients with advanced age or balanced translocations; and twin pregnancies discordant for a chromosomal anomaly. Forty-one karyotypic abnormalities were detected (24%). These were: 45,X (7 cases), trisomy 13 (5 cases), trisomy 18 (6 cases), trisomy 21 (4 cases), twin pregnancy where one twin had trisomy 21 (1 case), supernumerary marker chromosome (3 cases, one of which occurred in a twin pregnancy), triploidy (3 cases), X-linked mental retardation with fragile site at Xq28 in males (6 cases), fetal erythroleukaemia (3 cases including 2 cases with Turner's), Fanconi's anaemia (1 case), unbalanced chromosome translocation 47,XY+der22,t(11;22) mat (1 case), mos 46,XX18p-/46,XX,-18+i(18q) (1 case), 46,XXdel(2q) (1 case), and 46,XYt(5;17) de novo (1 case). In fetuses at high risk of a chromosome aberration, a rapidly obtained karyotype is helpful and fetoscopy and fetal blood sampling are justified in the second or third trimester.

Amniotic Fluid↗
PubMed1983

Milkborne salmonellosis in Scotland 1980 to 1982.

In Scotland between 1980 and 1982 there were 21 episodes of milkborne salmonella affecting a total of 1090 persons (range one to 654). There were eight deaths, including two children, in people associated with these outbreaks. The problem of milkborne salmonellosis continues to be greater in Scotland, where dairy herds on average are larger and a greater proportion of raw milk is consumed, than elsewhere in Britain. It is anticipated that legislation requiring the pasteurisation of virtually all milk sold for human consumption in Scotland by August 1983, will help to correct the situation.

Aged↗
PubMed1983

Salmonella montevideo infection in sheep and cattle in Scotland, 1970-81.

Outbreaks of abortion associated with infection by Salmonella montevideo have affected sheep in the east, especially the south-east, of Scotland each year since 1972. Disease in the north and north-east was usually less severe. Between 1 January 1970 and 31 December 1981, a total of 67 incidents affecting sheep were reported by veterinary laboratories to the Communicable Diseases (Scotland) Unit, 87% of which presented during the main lambing months of February, March and April. Twenty-one episodes of bovine infection were also recorded over the same period, 17 of which involved single animals only, usually an aborted cow or a scouring calf. Despite intensive investigations, neither the origin nor the mode of spread of S. montevideo infection among sheep and cattle in Scotland have been established with any certainty, although there has been considerable evidence indicating the role of scavenging wild birds, particularly seagulls, as vectors transmitting infection to other farms in the same district. Also largely unexplained are the differences in the epidemiology and clinical pattern of disease in the south-east compared to the north and north-east, while sheep in the west of Scotland have remained virtually unaffected throughout.

Abortion, Veterinary↗
PubMed1983

A cost benefit study of milk-borne salmonellosis.

An estimate of the benefits which would result from a ban on the sale of non-pasteurized milk in Scotland has been assessed by costing a recent outbreak of milk-borne salmonellosis in the Grampian Region. The cost of such a ban would not exceed the benefits under any but the most severe assumptions about the values attached to intangible benefits.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Interprofessional liaison in Scotland.

Communication between the medical, veterinary and environmental health professions has been established in Scotland since the early 1970s and was strengthened by the introduction of the Zoonoses Order 1975. The secondment of a veterinary officer to the Communicable Diseases (Scotland) Unit in Glasgow provides veterinary expertise on matters relating to public health, in addition to improving liaison, surveillance and the other functions of the unit.

Animals↗