Health authorities inundated with calls about tainted milk

By Stephen Smith, Globe Staff

State disease trackers today have received 50 to 100 calls from consumers and their physicians about possible exposure to a bacterial illness from drinking tainted milk. The calls emerged a day after a Central Massachusetts dairy halted production when health authorities implicated it as a potential source of four cases of the disease listeriosis.

In some cases, the callers reported symptoms that they believed were consistent with signs of listeriosis, said Dr. Alfred DeMaria, the state's director of communicable disease control. In other cases, doctors called to get further information about the disease, which strikes about 2,500 people each year in the United States and kills 500.

Patients were told to see their doctors to have their illnesses evaluated, and physicians were told to send blood samples for testing at the state laboratory if patients have suspected cases of listeriosis. Any samples testing positive for the disease, caused by a bacterium called listeria, would then be extensively investigated.

"A lot of people are nervous," DeMaria said.

People concerned about listeria can call the Department of Public Health at 617-983-6800, or visit its website, for information.