Cyclospora

It's Wednesday and time for our Doctor Roundtable with Dr. David Pate!

The region hasn’t experienced the virus with the same severity as the Midwest, but is beginning to see cyclosporiasis in communities.

It can take weeks to confirm a single case of intestinal illness caused by the cyclospora parasite, but the CDC's tally for this year now stands at over 4,100.

What started as a seasonal foodborne illness has grown into one of the largest outbreaks the U.S. has seen in years.

Confusion about the source of the outbreak and uncertainty about when it might be contained puts the onus on consumers to protect themselves.

As of Monday, Michigan authorities say their state alone has seen more than 6,100 cases of the parasite.

The FDA retracted its only positive test for cyclospora, the parasite at the center of a multistate outbreak, on Taylor Farms lettuce. But the agency believes lettuce from the brand is still linked.

The FDA says lettuce distributed by Taylor Fresh Foods and Taylor Farms de Mexico is still linked to the multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis. But the source may be difficult to definitively trace.

The FDA says the test identifying cyclospora in Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce was a "false positive." But the lettuce is still linked epidemiologically to cases of the illness in a multistate outbreak.

Shredded lettuce served at Taco Bell in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and Indiana is linked to cyclospora outbreak. Investigation continues