A rare type of Salmonella has sickened 20 people in Denmark and 17 in Austria. Since July, the Statens Serum Institut (SSI) has recorded 20 cases of Salmonella Umbilo. There are 14 men and six women sick.
Patients range from under 1 to 85 years old, and the median age is 52. Nine cases live in Midtjylland, six in Syddanmark, three in Nordjylland, and two in Hovedstaden. Patients were reported in July, August, and September.
Austria has also reported 17 cases of Salmonella Umbilo, which have been linked to rocket salad from Italy. The National Food Institute at the Technical University of Denmark, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (Fødevarestyrelsen), and SSI are trying to find the cause of the outbreak. Officials said it was too early to conclude a source from the Danish interviews, but salad and lettuce are among the food types being investigated.
SSI’s role involves whole-genome sequencing of isolates from sick people and patient interviews to try to identify a possible source of infection. WGS of bacteria isolated from patients is closely genetically related, and all belong to the sequence type 2014. Salmonella Umbilo is a rare serotype that has not been seen in Denmark since 2017, until the current incident.
Salmonella was the top cause of outbreaks in Denmark in 2023, with 18. The number of cases also increased to 1,207 from 899 in 2022. There were eight Salmonella Enteritidis outbreaks.
The largest outbreak, with 31 cases, was due to Salmonella Muenchen, .