A doctor for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that the outbreak of histoplasmosis at Ohio State is “a cluster” that “could be potentially concerning.”
“
I would say that any time that you have a cluster … it is worth more investigation,” said Dr. Benjamin Park, an epidemiologist at the CDC in Atlanta.
A cluster can be defined as a grouping of cases that seems unusual, he said.
A Columbus city official said Wednesday that the Columbus Public Health department has begun working with OSU to investigate the outbreak at Hitchcock Hall.
“We will be offering our assistance and seeking further information,” said Jose Rodriguez, spokesman at Columbus Public Health.
Three women — two employees at Hitchcock and one 19-year-old student who has spent time in Hitchcock — have all become ill with histoplasmosis within the past eight months. Two of them have been hospitalized.
Thirty employees are being moved from the building. The evacuation started last week.
“Sometimes it’s related to the building, sometimes it’s not,” Park said.
Not everyone who has been exposed to histoplasmosis gets ill enough to need hospitalization or medication. The fungus is found throughout the Ohio Valley.
Symptoms of the disease can start with flu-like symptoms but as the infection progresses it commonly affects the lungs.
“Sometimes people can get nodules or findings like regular pneumonia, or nodules that look like lung cancer,” Park said.
At times it takes longer than the normal three to 17 days after exposure for patients to require medical help.
“Some people have a sub-acute onset and start to feel ill gradually, and sometimes they don’t think they need to see a doctor,” Park said.
Low blood counts and anemia can also be associated with the disease in severe cases, he said. Urine and blood tests that specifically look for histoplasmosis are common ways for physicians to diagnose the disease.
Olga Stavridis, associate director of Engineering Career Services; Amy Franklin, an office administrative associate; and Chissy Nkemere, a student at the university, have been affected by the disease.
http://origin.cdc.gov/niosh/
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