Oyster-Associated Gastroenteritis Outbreak — Las Vegas, Nevada, April–May 2025
- Presentation Day/Time: Friday, April 24, 2:05 PM
- Presenter: Geoffrey Melly, PhD, MPH, Southern Nevada Health District
The Issue
- On April 24, 2025, a restaurant patron notified Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD) of four persons experiencing gastroenteritis after eating raw oysters.
What We Did
- We inspected the restaurant and conducted an oyster traceback investigation, which led to further inspection of the local oyster distributor and additional restaurants serving the implicated oysters. We also conducted a case-control study to evaluate the association between eating specific foods and becoming ill.
What We Found
- We identified 26 cases. Among 18 restaurant patrons reporting raw oyster consumption, 15 (83%) became ill. People who reported eating oysters had nearly 25 times the odds of becoming ill compared to people who didn't eat oysters. The traceback investigation linked oysters harvested on January 6 and January 30, 2025, and processed by Facility A, to nine restaurants where case patients ate. Inspection of a local oyster distributor and restaurants identified no problems with food storage, handling, or sanitation.
What This Means
- Oysters processed by Facility A and served raw at nine restaurants were epidemiologically associated with this outbreak. While the contamination source was unclear, our investigation informed a distributor recall and a Food and Drug Administration advisory.
