While fluid replacement and blood pressure support may be necessary to prevent death from dehydration, most patients recover without treatment in 5–10 days. There is no evidence that antibiotics improve the course of disease, and treatment with antibiotics may precipitate hemolytic–uremic syndrome. The antibiotics are thought to trigger prophage induction, and the prophages released by the dying bacteria infect other susceptible bacteria, converting them into toxin-producing forms. Antidiarrheal agents, such as loperamide (imodium), should also be avoided as they may prolong the duration of the infection. Certain novel treatment strategies, such as the use of anti-induction strategies to prevent toxin production and the use of anti-Shiga toxin antibodies, have also been proposed. History United States The U.S.D.A. banned the sale of ground beef contaminated with the O157:H7 strain in 1994. Culture and society Costs The pathogen results in an estimated 2,100 hospitalizations annually in the United States. The illness is often misdiagnosed; therefore, expensive and invasive diagnostic procedures may be performed. Patients who develop HUS often require prolonged hospitalization, dialysis, and long-term followup. See also 1993 Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak 1996 Odwalla E. coli outbreak 2011 Germany E. coli O104:H4 outbreak Escherichia coli O104:H4 Escherichia coli O121 Food-induced purpura List of foodborne illness outbreaks Walkerton E. coli outbreak References External links Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome Help (HUSH) – a UK based charity E. coli: Protecting yourself and your family from a sometimes deadly bacterium Escherichia coli O157:H7 genomes and related information at PATRIC, a Bioinformatics Resource Center funded by NIAID For more information about reducing your risk of foodborne illness, visit the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service website or the The Partnership for Food Safety Education | Fight BAC! briandeer.com, report from The Sunday Times on a UK outbreak, May 17, 1998 CBS5 report on September 2006 outbreak Escherichia coli Bovine diseases Zoonoses Foodborne illnesses bg:Escherichia coli O157:H7