What Is Shigella, and How Can It Affect Me?

 Posted on October 10, 2024 in Food Poisoning

When you take your family to a restaurant, you expect a pleasant meal without needing to prepare it or clean up afterward. What you do not expect is to become ill a few hours later. Unfortunately, multiple diners who recently ate at a Fairview Heights, IL, LongHorn Steakhouse have tested positive for Shigellosis, an illness caused by the Shigella bacteria. The restaurant temporarily closed due to the outbreak.

What is Shigella and how is it transferred? How does this bacteria affect people who are infected? Can you get compensation? A trusted Illinois food poisoning lawyer from Newland & Newland, LLP can answer your questions and assess your eligibility for compensation during your free consultation.

What Is Shigella?

Shigella is a bacterium that can be found in contaminated water and food. It can cause shigellosis, which infects approximately 450,000 people annually in the U.S. Symptoms typically present within two days and last seven days. These symptoms include:

• Fever
• Diarrhea, including bloody stool or prolonged diarrhea that lasts over three days
• Feeling like you need to have a bowel movement even when bowels are empty
• Stomach pain

Antibiotic treatment and other medications may help alleviate these symptoms, but some patients get better without them. Drinking plenty of water is vital to avoid dehydration. Severe cases may disrupt normal bowel functions for months or cause post-infection arthritis.

Who Is Most at Risk for Shigellosis?

Shigella live in feces and can be transmitted by coming into direct contact with stool, eating or drinking contaminated food or water, or contacting contaminated surfaces. Certain groups are more susceptible to Shigella:

• Residents or travelers to areas with poor sanitation
• Children under five
• People who change dirty diapers
• Homeless people
• Those who participate in vaginal sex with an infected person or anal sex  

Daycares, nursing homes, schools, and other facilities where multiple people are in close quarters are often affected by outbreaks. In restaurants and other establishments serving food or drink, it is vital for employees to wash their hands thoroughly after using the bathroom to avoid passing the shigella bacteria to others.

Because wiping after diarrhea may not remove all bacteria, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend refraining from sex for at least two weeks if one partner is infected with Shigella. If you swim, avoid swallowing water, as it may be infected.

What Should I Do If I Think I Am Infected With Shigella?

If you believe you may be suffering from shigellosis, visit your physician, healthcare clinic, or county health department. Medical professionals can order lab tests to determine whether you are suffering from food poisoning and establish a treatment plan.

You can also call Newland & Newland, LLP to discuss your situation. If your case qualifies, we can help you obtain compensation from the party or parties who infected you. You might receive medical expenses, lost wages, and other eligible damages.

Call Our Dedicated Illinois Shigella Food Poisoning Lawyers

If you are harmed by another party’s negligence, you deserve compensation. Unlike most personal injury firms, Newland & Newland, LLP focuses on food poisoning cases, meaning we are intimately familiar with the potential causes, establishing liability, and recovering damages for our clients. Call us at 312-981-0409 today for your free consultation with our skilled Illinois food poisoning attorneys.