PO
360
Trenton, NJ 08625-0360
For Release:
November 4, 2001
|
George
T. DiFerdinando, Jr., MD, MPH
Acting Commissioner
For
Further Information Contact:
Dennis McGowan or Marilyn Riley
(609) 984-7160
|
|
HUMAN
TESTING RESULTS
Following
is an update on the condition of persons suspected or confirmed
with anthrax: Note that the CDC defines a confirmed case of anthrax
as 1) a clinically compatible case of cutaneous, inhalational, or
gastrointestinal illness that is laboratory confirmed by isolation
of B. anthracis from an affected tissue or site or 2) other
laboratory evidence of B. anthracis infection based on at
least two supportive laboratory tests. A suspected case is
defined as 1) a clinically compatible case of illness without isolation
of
B. anthracis and no alternative diagnosis, but with laboratory
evidence of B. anthracis by one supportive laboratory test
or 2) a clinically compatible case of anthrax epidemiologically
linked to a confirmed environmental exposure, but without corroborative
laboratory evidence of B. anthracis infection.
| Patients |
Patient
Status |
Conditions |
| Delaware
resident who works at the Bellmawr Mail Distribution Center |
Listed
as a Suspected Cutaneous case by CDC on Oct. 31 |
Recovering |
| Kuser
Road (Hamilton) office worker |
Confirmed
Cutaneous case by CDC on Oct 29 |
Released
from hospital and recovering |
| West
Trenton Postal worker |
Confirmed
Cutaneous case by CDC on Oct. 18 |
Recovering |
| Route
130 Hamilton Mail Processing Facility worker |
Listed
as Suspected Cutaneous case by CDC on Oct. 18 |
Recovering |
| Route
130 Hamilton Mail Processing Facility worker |
Listed
as Confirmed Cutaneous case on Oct. 19 by Pennsylvania Department
of Health |
Recovering |
| Route
130 Hamilton Mail Processing Facility worker |
Confirmed
Inhalational case by CDC on Oct 28. Listed as Suspected by CDC
on Oct. 23. |
Condition
upgraded to good, but still hospitalized |
| Route
130 Mail Hamilton Processing Facility worker |
Confirmed
Inhalational case by CDC on Oct. 29. Listed as Suspected on
Oct. 25 by CDC. |
Released
from hospital and recovering |
ENVIRONMENTAL
TESTING RESULTS
Following
is a listing of environmental sampling tests conducted by the New
Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and crime scene sampling
by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
| Facility |
Organization |
Results |
| Bellmawr
Mail Distribution Center |
DHSS,
CDC & FBI |
Approximately
100 samples were collected Oct. 31. One of the FBI samples is
positive through final testing. All other FBI, DHSS and CDC
samples taken are negative through final testing. Although not
recommended by DHSS and CDC, workers at the facility were offered
10 days of antibiotics. |
| Kuser
Road Office Building |
DHSS,
CDC & FBI |
Sampling
was conducted Oct. 30. One FBI sample from an in-office mail
bin was reported positive on Nov. 2. All other FBI, DHSS and
CDC samples are negative through final testing. The DHSS and
CDC did not recommend that the office be closed. The area around
where the positive sample was collected has been cleaned. Although
not recommended by DHSS and CDC, employees were offered 10 days
of antibiotics pending final test results. |
| Downtown
Station on Montgomery St., Trenton |
FBI |
All
11 samples taken to date are negative for anthrax through final
testing. |
| Princeton
Main, West Windsor |
DHSS,
CDC & FBI
|
23
samples taken Oct. 27 are negative through final testing.
22 samples taken Oct. 27 are negative and one sample is positive
through final testing. Additional environmental samples were
collected Oct. 30 and all are negative through final testing.
The area around where the positive sample was collected has
been cleaned. Although not recommended by DHSS and CDC, workers
were offered 10 days of antibiotics.
|
| Route
130 Mail Processing Facility, Hamilton Township |
DHSS,
CDC & FBI |
34
out of 102 samples taken are positive for anthrax through final
testing. The DHSS collected 20 samples on Oct 18 in the public
areas and common use - all are negative. Also on Oct. 18, the
FBI took 23 samples (14 are positive). The DHSS and CDC team
took 59 samples (20 are positive) on Oct. 21. |
| Carteret
Facility |
DHSS
and CDC |
All
14 samples taken Oct. 24 are negative for anthrax through final
testing. The DHSS and CDC has informed the facility manager
to advise workers and business visitors to stop taking antibiotics
that had been given as a precautionary measure. |
| Downtown
Station on Montgomery St., Trenton |
FBI |
All
11 samples taken to date are negative for anthrax through final
testing. |
| West
Trenton facility, Ewing Twp. |
DHSS
& CDC
FBI
|
All
22 samples taken Oct. 25 are negative for anthrax through
final testing.
All
20 samples taken Oct. 19 and analyzed at the United States
Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Disease (USAMRIID)
are negative for anthrax through final testing.
|
| West
Trenton facility, Ewing Twp. (areas outside the facility) |
FBI
|
All
15 samples taken Oct. 23 by the FBI are negative for anthrax
through final testing.
|
DHSS and CDC collected 15 to 25 environmental samples on Nov. 3
from each of the 48 post offices in Central New Jersey not previously
sampled that have their mail processed at the Hamilton Mail Processing
Facility. The ten teams that collected the samples also met with
postal employees to answer questions and address concerns. CDC will
test the samples.
The approximately
1,300 nasal swab tests done on workers from the Hamilton and West
Trenton postal facilities are all negative through final testing.
The nasal swabs were taken by DHSS, CDC and Robert Wood Johnson
University Medical Center-Hamilton. A negative nasal swab test does
not mean that a person has not been exposed to anthrax, and individuals
from Hamilton and West Trenton are urged to continue their antibiotic
treatment.
The Department
has a bioterrorism phone line at the Emergency Operations Center
at 609-538-6030 that is open between 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. until
further notice. Hearing-impaired residents with anthrax-related
concerns can contact the Department through the New Jersey Relay
Center by dialing either 711 or 1-800-852-7899. The Relay Center
will convey the caller's message to DHSS. Information is also available
on the website at www.state.nj.us/health.
As
of today, the state laboratory has received more than 1,506 environmental
samples, such as envelopes and packages, collected by law enforcement
agencies from across the state. Testing on 1,103 of those specimens
has been completed and all are negative for anthrax. The lab conducts
preliminary (gram/spore stain) tests and culture tests on environmental
samples and on clinical samples that meet established testing protocols.
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