McCown Michael, Grzeszak Benjamin
J Spec Oper Med. 2010 Fall;10(4):45-7.
Although many public health articles have been published detailing foodborne illness outbreaks, a medical literature search revealed no articles that detail a case study or a specific response of a deployed U.S. military unit to a potential foodborne illness. This article describes a recent public health case study of a U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) team sickened while deployed to South America. It highlights public health factors which may affect U.S. personnel deployed or serving overseas and may serve as a guide for a deployed SOF medic to reference in response to a potential food- or waterborne illness outbreak.
Eight food samples and five water samples were collected. The food samples were obtained from the host nation kitchen that provided food to the SOF team. The water samples were collected from the kitchen as well as from multiple sites on the host nation base. These samples were packaged in sterile containers, stored at appropriate temperatures, and submitted to a U.S. Army diagnostic laboratory for analysis.
Laboratory results confirmed the presence of elevated aerobic plate counts (APCs) in the food prepared by the host nation and consumed by the SOF team.
High APCs in food are the primary indicator of improper sanitation of food preparation surfaces and utensils.
This case study concluded that poor kitchen sanitation, improper food storage, preparation, and/or holding were the probable conditions that led to the team?s symptoms. These results emphasize the importance of ensuring safe food and water for U.S. personnel serving overseas, especially in a deployment or combat setting. Contaminated food and/or water will negatively impact the health and availability of forces, which may lead to mission failure. The SOF medic must respond to potential outbreaks and be able to (1) critically inspect food preparation areas and accurately advise commanders in order to correct deficiencies and (2) perform food/water surveillance testing consistently throughout a deployment and at any time in response to a potential outbreak.
尽管已发表了许多详细介绍食源性疾病暴发情况的公共卫生文章，但医学文献检索显示，没有文章详细介绍美国军事单位在部署期间对潜在食源性疾病的案例研究或具体应对措施。本文描述了一个最近的公共卫生案例研究，涉及一支美国特种作战部队（SOF）在部署到南美洲时患病的情况。它突出了可能影响部署或在海外服役的美国人员的公共卫生因素，并可作为部署的特种部队医务人员应对潜在食源性或水源性疾病暴发时的参考指南。
采集了8份食品样本和5份水样。食品样本取自为特种部队提供食物的东道国厨房。水样从厨房以及东道国基地的多个地点采集。这些样本被包装在无菌容器中，在适当温度下储存，并提交给美国陆军诊断实验室进行分析。
实验室结果证实，东道国为特种部队准备并食用的食物中需氧平板计数（APC）升高。
食品中高APC是食品制备表面和器具卫生不当的主要指标。
本案例研究得出结论，厨房卫生条件差、食品储存、制备和/或保存不当可能是导致该部队出现症状的原因。这些结果强调了确保海外服役的美国人员获得安全食品和水的重要性，特别是在部署或战斗环境中。受污染的食品和/或水将对部队的健康和可用性产生负面影响，这可能导致任务失败。特种部队医务人员必须应对潜在的疾病暴发，并能够（1）严格检查食品制备区域并准确向指挥官提供建议，以纠正缺陷，以及（2）在整个部署期间持续进行食品/水监测检测，并在任何时候应对潜在的疾病暴发。
