A Detroit woman was sick with diarrhea for nearly a month before she was diagnosed with and treated for cyclosporiasis, a parasitic infection that ruined her summer and “put a stop” to her life while she was sick.
Cammal Ogletree, 53, ate a Dorito taco meal June 15 at an Allen Park Taco Bell, she said. Six days later, her symptoms first started: Fatigue, nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, aches and pains and persistent diarrhea.
She first went to urgent care June 24, but was told she hadn’t been sick for long enough and her symptoms would probably pass, Ogletree said.
It wasn’t until her third doctor’s visit after 10 days straight of diarrhea that someone agreed to run tests, and until July 19 when the test came back positive for cyclosporiasis, a parasitic illness that has been spreading through Michigan due to what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believe to be infected shredded iceberg lettuce from central Mexico.
“In one word to sum it up, to me the whole event was traumatic,” Ogletree said from her home. “It definitely ruined my summer. It literally put a stop to my way of life for almost an entire month.”
Ogletree is feeling better now that she has started taking antibiotics to treat the parasite, but she said she still has lingering nausea and abdominal pain from the illness.
Michigan has been hit the hardest with the cyclosporiasis outbreak, with more than 9,200 people testing positive for the illness since June 22, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
It’s the largest outbreak Michigan has ever had of cyclosporiasis, a parasitic illness that causes frequent, watery and explosive diarrhea. Infections have been linked to iceberg lettuce in at least five states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Public health investigators identified Taco Bell lettuce as a source of the outbreak in early July and identified Taylor Farms as the growers, processors and suppliers of the lettuce. Taylor Farms recalled iceberg lettuce sourced from Central Mexico on July 16, according to the CDC.
When Ogletree returned from urgent care after her first visit June 24, the symptoms continued. She went to the emergency room June 26 after her symptoms continued to worsen, where she was put on IV fluids and provided medication to treat her symptoms, she said.
“I had fatigue, no energy and I couldn’t eat anything,” Ogletree said. “I was literally eating a handful of crackers and taking sips of water per day, that was all my stomach could handle and it was coming right out. … Everything was spinning out of control and I’m begging for them to help me.”
Ogletree said she had heard a bit of buzz about cyclosporiasis and asked the ER staff if she could have that, but they brushed her off and told her she didn’t have the right symptoms. They sent her home with instructions to drink more fluids, she said.
After 10 days straight of diarrhea, Ogletree went to her primary care doctor, who tested her for cyclosporiasis, but said it would take a week for the results to come back. She said she was again sent home with instructions to drink Pepto-Bismol and Pedialyte and see what happens.
But two days later, Ogletree was back at the emergency room, where she ultimately was admitted and spent three days. She was frustrated no one seemed to be taking her symptoms seriously and told her son to pack a bag, as she wasn’t leaving. She again asked about cyclosporiasis, but the staff said they would not treat her without the test results back. They ran a battery of other tests and, unsure if she was contagious or if her symptoms were life-threatening, she was quarantined in a room by herself, she said.
“I felt like I was wasting away,” Ogletree said of her mentality at this point.
They sent her home again after the tests did not reveal anything, and it wasn’t until July 19 when her tests came back positive for cyclosporiasis that she was given the medication that would finally stop her symptoms.
Ogletree said she lost 15 pounds within 30 days. She still is nauseous and has abdominal pain, but is getting better every day, she said.
“I could not work, I couldn’t socialize,” Ogletree said. “I’m feeling almost depressed at this point because I can’t live life the way I’m used to living it. It shut down my life.”
Ogletree plans to file a lawsuit against Taco Bell and Taylor Farms, but has not done so yet. Her attorney, Ron Simon, said the lawsuit is in the works.
Simon said they will be seeking compensation for Ogletree for her experience and the huge medical bills she is facing, as well as a demand to learn how this contamination happened and what Taylor Farms plans to do to ensure this doesn’t happen again.
Simon and his firm, Ron Simon & Associates, represent hundreds of people impacted by cyclosporiasis.
kberg@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit woman speaks about ‘traumatic’ cyclosporiasis illness
Reporting by Kara Berg, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kara Berg, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
