WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The Northern Kentucky Health Department has issued a public health advisory, warning about an outbreak of Cryptosporidiosis, commonly known as Crypto, caused by the Cryptosporidium parasite.
The department has reported about ten confirmed and numerous probable cases of gastrointestinal illness.
The public pools are the potential source of the outbreak as half of the confirmed cases reported are linked to Silverlake Water Park in Erlanger.
The illness causes symptoms like watery diarrhea, abdominal cramps, low-grade fever, vomiting and nausea, which could lead to dehydration.
'However, an individual's symptoms can vary and some may not show any symptoms. Young children and people immunologically suppressed are at increased risk for more severe illness,' the advisory stated.
Crypto parasites can infect both humans and animals, and the illness can result from exposure to contaminated water, food, or soil could lead to the illness.
Notably, the parasite is resistant to the chlorine treatments commonly used in public pools, as well as hand sanitizer and rubbing alcohol.
'Super-chlorinating the water would typically kill almost anything, and may kill a lot of Crypto spores, but Crypto is very hard to kill so it's not 100 percent effective,' spokesperson Skip Tate said.
'If someone has Crypto or not can only be confirmed after a test, and those tests usually take 24-48 hours to send to a lab and get back.'
The health department has advised the public to avoid using swimming pools, refrain from swallowing pool water, and maintain good hygiene practices.
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