Getting a dip in the pool is a popular way to beat the heat of the summer but swimmers in Ohio should be cautious because public swimming pools here are contaminated by a microscopic parasite that can cause a gastrointestinal illness called cryptosporidiosis, or crypto.
To date, more than 100 people in the state have already been sickened by the diarrheal illness prompting health authorities to declare an outbreak in several counties.
Public health officials regularly receive reports of cryptosporidiosis but there has been a significant increase in cases lately.
Ohio has seen a 50 percent rise in cryptosporidiosis with Columbus, Delaware and Franklin counties reporting 107 cases, which is more than what health departments have seen over the past three years combined.
Officials have not tied the outbreak to any particular swimming location but a number of those who got ill went swimming several times at different recreational water facilities.
The crypto parasite is most commonly spread through water. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that it can survive in chlorinated water for about 10 days or longer because it is protected by its outer shell.
The pathogen is found in the fecal matter of an infected person and is spread by swallowing water contaminated with crypto-infected fecal matter.Crypto can also be transmitted through human-to-human contact. Symptoms of infection include watery diarrhea, stomach pains and vomiting.
Amy Schmitt, a public health nurse, said that among the best ways to prevent infection is to avoid ingesting pool water. Sick people should also stay out of the water.
"If they're sick, particularly with diarrhea, they really shouldn't be swimming," Schmitt said. "And if they're diagnosed with this infection called crypto — and that's done by lab test — they should not swim for two weeks after the diarrhea has stopped."
Public health authorities also advise people to shower before swimming, frequently take their children for bathroom breaks when swimming and to change diapers in the bathroom. CDC likewise recommended that swimming waters should be treated with ultraviolet light or ozone to inactivate Crypto in locations where people may have contracted the gastrointestinal disease.
The rise in crypto case is not just isolated in Ohio. The United States as a whole has seen an increase in crypto cases. In the mid-1990s, crypto occurred only in one per 100,000 people. By 2011, the rate increased to three cases per 100,000. Rates are particularly high in Midwest, where the rate is six cases per 100,000 as of 2011.
