There are many strains of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria. As a result, microbiologists categorize them into more than 170 serogroups and then further break down each serogroup into one or more serotypes. The serogroup is indicated by a number, and the serotype follows and is separated by a colon. The E. coli strain primarily responsible for E. coli-related injury and death is classified as E. coli O157:H7; it belongs to the 0157 serogroup and the H7 serotype.
E. coli O157:H7 was first recognized as a cause of illness in 1982 during an outbreak of severe bloody diarrhea; the outbreak was traced to contaminated hamburgers. While most cases of E. coli O157:H7 food poisoning are a result of contaminated ground beef, other outbreaks have been linked to spinach, lettuce, pepperoni pizza, unpasteurized apple and orange juice and milk, alfalfa sprouts, and even water.
E. coli O157:H7 is a rare strain of E. coli that causes severe damage to the lining of the intestine. Specifically, the acute disease caused by E. coli O157 is hemorrhagic colitis. E. coli O157:H7 can also result in hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), the leading cause of kidney failure in children in the United States.
Please see the following pages for more detailed information on E. coli O157:H7.
- E. coli Infection
- Shiga Toxin
- E. coli Symptoms
- Diagnosis of E. coli
- E. coli Prevention
- E. coli Complications
