By Jennifer Smola, The Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS – As the number of cases of diarrheal disease in a two-county outbreak has nearly doubled in the past week, health officials are reaching out to schools and day-care centers to encourage prevention.
READ MORE: In The Columbus Dispatch
Cases of cryptosporidiosis linked to area swimming pools, splash pads and a water park — in Columbus and Franklin and Delaware counties — have jumped from 107 a week ago to at least 202.
That’s more cases than the health departments saw in the past four years combined. (All but about a dozen or so of the cases were reported in July.)
Even as summer and trips to swimming pools are coming to an end, the outbreak is expected to increase as more people come forward. The city of Dublin announced Thursday that it was closing its pools until further notice, as workers hyperchlorinate the facilities as a precaution.
To reduce the spread of illness:
Do not swim when you have diarrhea and for two weeks after you recovered.
Do not pee or poop in the water.
Take a shower/bathe before going in the water.
Wash hands with soap and water after using the bathroom, changing diapers and before eating.
Change diapers in a bathroom and not by the pool.
Take kids on frequent bathroom breaks and check diapers often.
Avoid swallowing any water and keep it out of your mouth.
-Source: Columbus Public Health
Safety measures for schools and child care facilities:
Keep kids with diarrhea out of a child care setting or school until diarrhea has stopped.
Keep kids with diarrhea or those diagnosed with Crypto out of swimming activities
Wash hands with soap and water, scrubbing for at least 20 seconds.
Have kids wash their hands when they first arrive, after they use the toilet, after having their diapers changed, and before eating snacks or meals.
Keep facilities clean by disinfecting bathrooms, tabletops, desks, diaper-changing areas, toys, food surfaces and high chairs every day.
–Source: Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
Crypto is caused by a microscopic parasite spread by swallowing water that has been contaminated with fecal matter from an infected person or from human-to-human contact, Columbus Public Health spokesman Jose Rodriguez said.
Symptoms include watery diarrhea with abdominal pain and cramping which can be accompanied by dehydration, weight loss, fever, nausea and vomiting.
Rodriguez says symptoms can last for two weeks but infected people can spread the disease for several weeks so they should avoid activities in recreational waters for at least two weeks after diarrhea subsides and practice diligent handwashing.