Michigan sees possible peak in Cyclospora cases after lettuce recall
Health officials say Michigan's cyclospora outbreak may have peaked following a voluntary recall of shredded iceberg lettuce, though uncertainties remain about other sources and testing limitations.
Michigan health officials reported that the state’s cyclospora outbreak, linked to a parasite transmitted through contaminated food, may have reached its highest point after a recall of shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recorded more than 18,000 confirmed or suspected cases nationwide, with Michigan accounting for over 9,500 illnesses and about 160 hospitalizations in the past two months.
State chief medical executive Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian noted that a recent surge of roughly 475 cases was largely due to a reporting delay at a single health system and does not necessarily indicate new infections. She added that emergency-department visits for diarrhea are declining, but warned that testing backlogs mean milder cases may go undetected.
“I do have a big caveat,” Bagdasarian said, noting that labs are limiting tests to severely ill or immunocompromised patients.
Bagdasarian said it is unclear whether the slowdown is directly tied to the lettuce recall, citing ongoing public-health measures such as guidance to peel, cook, or discard outer layers of produce. She emphasized that many patients have not reported lettuce consumption or specific restaurant visits, leaving the possibility of additional contaminated foods.
The Food and Drug Administration has not responded to inquiries about its trace-back efforts. Experts highlighted the difficulty of pinpointing a single source because food often passes through multiple distributors and may be contaminated by irrigation or processing water. Jennifer McEntire, founder of Food Safety Strategy, said products “move or change hands many times,” complicating investigations.
Other states have explored cilantro and parsley as possible vehicles, but no definitive links have been confirmed. Former FDA officials Dr. Stephen Ostroff and Frank Yiannas suggested that other contaminated lettuce grown in the same region could be involved and that multiple products may be responsible for ongoing cases.
Barbara Kowalcyk of George Washington University said the outbreak’s two waves likely reflect separate contaminated batches and warned that persistent water contamination could affect various crops. She called for improved laboratory methods and greater investment in public-health capacity to detect cyclospora in the environment.