Parents are concerned about health department's follow-up
It's been almost a month since we first learned about several cases of e-coli in the Tri-States.
There are a total of six confirmed cases - three in Lee County, Iowa; two in Des Moines County, Iowa; and one in Hancock County, Illinois.
We know at least three of those cases are children.
Two of those kids, 5 year-old Kaden Althide and 7 year-old TiAhnna Bryant were treated in the University of Iowa Children's Hospital for complications of their E-coli infection. Both kids had to go on dialysis and were at risk for a stroke.
Health department officials in all three counties say there is *no* connection between these E-coli cases.
Kaden's and TiAhnna's families disagree. These parents say their children drank the same unpasteurized cider at a local pumpkin patch within 24 hours of each other...that's when the sickness started.
Kaden's Mother Kim Althide said, "He had problems. There was so much fluid building up, pressing up against his lungs and heart that he was having trouble breathing."
TiAhnna's mother SuzAnne Griffis said, "Every day for five days she had a new tube put in. By the time we left the ICU she had seven tubes."
KHQA's Melissa Shriver spent time with these families in Iowa City on Tuesday. We're happy to tell you tonight that both Kaden and TiAhnna have been released from the hospital as of this morning. Their parents say they're glad about that.
But they're still frustrated over what they call their local health departments' lack of communication with them and the community. We checked into it, and it took about two weeks to confirm these cases of E-coli. The parents say that's just too long. And they told Melissa they've learned a very valuable lesson...what's in your medicine cabinet may put your children at risk.
The Iowa Department of Public Health says e-coli bacteria normally is harmless and lives in your stomach. But dangerous strains of e-coli can live in fecal matter of humans or animals. It can be present in raw milk, meat or unpasteurized juices or can be transferred from infected persons who don't wash their hands. Some doctors may mistake the early symptoms for the flu and prescribe antibiotics or over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medications.
That's what happened in Kaden's case. His doctor prescribed antibiotics. Dr. Pat Brophy with the University of Iowa Children's Hospital says those drugs actually can cause complications and kidney failure, making it deadly for small children like Kaden and the elderly.
Dr. Brophy said, "But the impetus is on healthcare professionals to recognize it. There are some cases of diarrhea that won't be associated with E-coli. Certainly bloody diarrhea don't give Pepto-bismol or anything to stop the diarrhea from occuring.".
That's why Kaden and TiAhnna's parents are so concerned with how long it took for the health departments to confirm their cases. Without proper warnings to others, more children's lives could have been at risk.
Griffis said, "If you don't educate people in the community who may have it and they're thinking it's the flu. You treat it wrong and it's going to develop into HUS for a small child, that was the biggest concern."
Althide said, "We asked them to put out warnings to doctors of things to look for and not to do. Even go to the school and let parents know what to watch for and what not to give their kids. But nothing could be done until the cases were confirmed e-coli, which took 2 weeks. By that time E-coli could very well have been gone and the source disappear."
We contacted two local health departments for answers. They directed us to the Medical Director of the Iowa Department of Public Health, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk.
She told us it can take anywhere from several days to a couple of weeks to confirm E-coli cases based on how much testing is needed and how long it takes for doctors to report it.
But she says health departments go into action right away when a case like this is even suspected.
Dr. Patricia Quinlisk said, "One of the things that is very common local health departments to send out information to local healthcare providers, doctors and nurses or the emergency room saying we're concerned this disease in our area and community and if you see anyone with symptoms please call us. That's something the public may not know."
Dr. Quinlisk says it's up to all of us from doctors to parents and health departments to be vigilant in reporting E-coli cases. The longer it takes to report the illness, the longer confirmation will take. She says parents and doctors should never treat diarrhea with medications because of concerns over complications with E-coli.
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