E.coli death in France

A 78-year-old French woman has died in intensive care in Bordeaux from a deadly kidney disease caused by E.coli, French regional health officials said Saturday. Officials said there was no link with the virulent strain of enterohaemorrhagic E.coli (EHEC) which has caused around 50 deaths in recent weeks across Europe, the majority in Germany. The source of those infections is believed to have been organic vegetable sprouts. The woman had been hospitalised with acute haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), the killer kidney complication reported in a quarter of the cases in the current outbreak. The source of the E.coli strain which she contracted has not been identified, officials said. Seven people infected with E.coli after eating vegetable sprouts at a leisure centre at Begles, near Bordeaux, remain in hospital, where their condition is described as stable.