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An outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in South London: what value the p value ?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

H. C. Maguire ,
E. Holmes ,
J. Hollyer ,
J. E. M. Strangeways ,
P. Foster ,
R. E. Holliman  and
R. Stanwell-Smith
H. C. Maguire
Affiliation:
Public Health Laboratory, St George's Hospital, London SW17 0QT
E. Holmes
Affiliation:
Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS), Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre (CDSC). 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ
J. Hollyer
Affiliation:
Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS), Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre (CDSC). 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ
J. E. M. Strangeways
Affiliation:
Communicable Disease Control, Wandsworth Health Authority, Harewood House, 61 Glenburnie Road, London SW17 7DJ
P. Foster
Affiliation:
Wandsworth Environmental Services, 78 Garrett Lane, London SW18 4DJ
R. E. Holliman
Affiliation:
Public Health Laboratory, St George's Hospital, London SW17 0QT
R. Stanwell-Smith
Affiliation:
Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS), Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre (CDSC). 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ
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Summary

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An outbreak of cryptosporidiosis which affected 44 people in January and February 1991 was identified through local surveillance at a South London Public Health Laboratory. Preliminary enquiries revealed that more than half the patients were adult and that there were no common factors other than geographical association. A case-control study showed a significant association between illness and consumption of tap water supplied by a particular water company, as well as a dose response effect. There were no apparent breaches or irregularities in the water distribution system and no indication of a problem through routine monitoring indices. This incident demonstrates the problems of establishing the source of cryptosporidiosis outbreaks in the absence of evidence of environmental abnormality, as well as possibly indicating that water conforming to current treatment standards may occasionally contain sufficient numbers of Cryptosporidium oocysts to cause sporadic cases or clusters.

Type
Research Article
Information
Epidemiology & Infection , Volume 115 , Issue 2 , October 1995 , pp. 279 - 287
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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