SoyNut Butter Outbreak Lawsuit Update: Our law firm has filed a lawsuit against The SoyNut Butter Company for a child who contracted an E. coli O157:H7 infection and hemolytic uremic syndrome (kidney failure) after eating an I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter product at a daycare. Our young client is one of at least 20 children sickened in this outbreak, 7 of whom developed HUS.
If your child has been sickened and you have questions about an E. coli lawsuit to compensate your little one, contact our E.coli lawyers at 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free) or use our online free consultation form. =
Our law firm, which recently won $7.55 million for a child sickened in another outbreak, is investigating a multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7 infections that are linked to I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter products.
People in nine states are infected with the outbreak strain of the pathogenic bacteria. Seven of those people, all children under 5, have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a complication of an E. coli infection that can cause kidney failure. We have just learned that 6 of the E. coli cases in Portland, Oregon were sickened at Montessori of Alameda.
Those sickened live in five states across the country. The outbreak case count by state is Arizona (4), California (4), Maryland (1), Missouri (1), New Jersey (1), Oregon (4, suspected 4), Virginia (1), Washington (1), and Wisconsin (1). Six of the twelve patients have been hospitalized. Illnesses began on dates that range from January 6, 2017, to February 15, 2017. It takes time between when a person gets sick and when their illness is reported to public health authorities, so the outbreak may grow. Illnesses that occurred after February 8, 2017, may not yet have been reported.
The CDC recommends that consumers do not eat, and childcare centers, schools, and other institutions do not serve, any I.M. Healthy brand SoyNut Butter varieties and sizes, or I.M. Healthy brand granola coated with SoyNut Butter. An official recall has not yet been issued.
These products have a two-year shelf life, so some will be in consumers’ homes. Check to see if you have these products in your pantry and discard them. Even if you ate or served some of those products and no one got sick, throw the rest of it away in a sealed container.
The E. coli Investigation and Evidence Pointing to I.M. Healthy Soy Nut Butter
The PulseNet system is being used to identify any illnesses that may be part of this outbreak. PulseNet performs DNA fingerprinting on bacteria isolated from patients by using pulsed field-gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and whole-genome sequencing (WGS). The outbreak report states that the DNA fingerprint of this outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 bacteria has never been seen before in the PulseNet database.
Public health officials interviewed nine ill persons or their family members about foods they ate the week before they got sick. All of those patients either ate I.M. Healthy brand SoyNut Butter at home (five people) the week before they became ill or attended a childcare center that served I.M. Healthy brand SoyNut Butter or I.M. Healthy brand granola coated with SoyNut Butter (four people). This is a much higher proportion than expected when compared to people interviewed in past outbreak investigations.
The Patients
Eleven of the twelve ill persons in this outbreak are under the age of 18. The patient age range is from 2 to 48 years, with a median age of 8. That explains the high rate of HUS in this outbreak since those younger than age 5 usually develop that serious complication.
The symptoms of an E. coli infection include severe abdominal and stomach cramps, diarrhea that may be bloody and/or watery, and a mild fever. Symptoms usually begin a few days after exposure to the bacteria and can last for a week.
If E. coli infections are treated with antibiotics, or if the patient is under the age of 5, a complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) can occur. That syndrome can cause kidney damage and kidney failure. Symptoms of HUS include little or no urine output, easy bruising, lethargy, a skin rash, and bleeding from the nose or mouth. If you or anyone in your family has been experiencing these symptoms, they should see a doctor immediately.
E. coli Lawsuits
Our lawyers have won multi-million-dollar settlements against national food companies. They can help you and your family can sue for compensation, medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and future medical bills. It is critically important that you hire a lawyer with experience because anyone sickened in this outbreak, particularly the children who have HUS, will most likely have life-long kidney problems.
Our law firm is one of only a few in the country that specializes in food poisoning cases. Our lawyers have won millions of dollars for clients who have been sickened with E. coli infections after eating contaminated products. Fill out our free online consultation form or call 1-888-377-8900. Someone from our firm will be in touch soon.