Colombia’s National Health Institute dismissed Monday any link between the E. coli bacteria found in Colombia and the strain that has thus far caused 35 deaths in Europe.
The director for the National Health Institute, Juan Gonzalo Lopez, clarified that the strain of E. Coli found in one patient in Colombia’s northern Cordoba department has no relation to Europe’s E. coli outbreak.
Lopez told RCN Radio that “E. coli is a bacteria that is constantly present in our environment, in the feces of animals and humans, and any of these strains can affect people.” He added, “according to what we have learned, there is no epidemiological link with what is happening in Germany.”
Doctors initially believed that the patient’s diarrhea, which first began on May 7, was a symptom that could be linked with an E. coli infection. Lopez addressed the patient’s issue by saying it is “becoming a case of chronic diarrhea.”
The patient’s health is reported to be stable, and he will remain under medical supervision and recieve specialized medical treatment in the city of Barranquilla.