Parasitic illness spreading from local public pool

FLORENCE, Ky. — An outbreak of cryptosporidiosis, commonly known as crypto, is spreading across northern Kentucky.

Northern Kentucky Department of Health They have about a dozen confirmed cases and believe there are many more suspected cases.

Cryptos is a gastrointestinal disease characterized by the following symptoms:

• Watery diarrhea
• Abdominal cramps
• Slight fever
• vomiting
• nausea

We reached out to Silver Lake in Erlanger, where the health department says some of the cases came from. The club released the following statement:
“Health and safety is our top priority at Silver Lake and we are taking every possible measure to ensure our pool is safe for our members, staff and guests. Upon notification of the first case from the Health Department, we immediately took steps to close and clean the pool. Members were notified on social media that the pool would be closed for sanitation. We closed the pool by 5 p.m., at which point we followed Northern Kentucky Health Department protocol and performed a process called super-chlorination to kill the cryptids. Silver Lake’s pool was over-chlorinated to a level far beyond that needed to kill the cryptids. Once this process was complete and chlorine levels returned to safe levels, we were given the go-ahead by the Health Department to reopen the pool. This process took more than 42 hours to complete. The outdoor pool was closed from 5 p.m. on August 9th and reopened at 11 a.m. on August 11th.”

The agency said cryptosporins can occur even in pools that are operating at prescribed standards because the parasite is resistant to normal levels of chlorination.

Health officials have warned that young children and those with weakened immune systems are most at risk of severe illness.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The incubation period for the disease is 2-10 days, with symptoms often appearing 7 days after infection.

Cryptos is spread through animal and human waste, and improper hand-washing is a common way to spread the parasite.

Health officials warn that cryptosporin is also known to be resistant to hand sanitizers, but that continued cleaning of surfaces and hand washing can help reduce the risk.

Anyone with similar symptoms is asked to avoid public swimming pools for at least two weeks after symptoms have subsided.

If you think you may be infected, health authorities advise you to contact a medical facility for testing, Northern Kentucky Department of Health. The department said in a press release that the outbreak is still under investigation.