KGMI News Reporting
By Karen Taylor

BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Eight people are now in the hospital from the E. coli outbreak, with one boy on dialysis after suffering acute kidney failure.

Doctor Peter Filuk is a pediatrician at Peace Health Saint Joseph Medical Center. He saw many of the sick kids in the outpatient center before they went to the hospital.

Dr. Filuk says E. coli causes bad stomach aches and frequent, bloody diarrhea. It can be quite alarming and unpleasant for both the children and the parents. He says it is definitely not your “run of the mill” diarrhea, it is “pretty severe.”

He says for some reason, E. coli attacks blood platelets, which can cause children to bruise or bleed easier. In rare cases, about 10 percent of the time, E. coli can cause kidney failure.

He says it’s important for parents to make sure everyone is practicing good hand washing and to talk with your doctor.

He also recommends parents keep their children out of daycares, preschools, school and other crowded situations until the symptoms have completely cleared. E. coli can sometimes be passed from person to person following an outbreak.

The E. coli outbreak linked to the Milk Makers Fest in Lynden has now made up to 45 people sick. Most of the people who got sick went to the event or had close contact with someone who did.

The Whatcom County Health Department says the incubation period is over so they don’t expect to see many more new cases.

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