What Is Vibrio Vulnificus?

The CDC says most people get vibriosis by eating raw or undercooked shellfish, particularly oysters, and that some people get it after an open wound comes in contact with coastal waters. It estimates that 80,000 cases of vibriosis happen each year in the United States, and that 52,000 of them result from eating contaminated food. A February 2024 CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report says 150 to 200 Vibrio vulnificus infections are reported to CDC each year in the United States, and that approximately 20% of them are fatal.

In a September 2023 Health Alert Network advisory, the CDC notified health care providers, laboratories and public health departments about recent reports of fatal Vibrio vulnificus infections, including wound and foodborne infections, and urged clinicians to consider it as a possible cause of infected wounds exposed to coastal waters, particularly near the Gulf of Mexico or East Coast and during periods of warmer coastal sea surface temperatures. It says these wound infections have a short incubation period and are characterized by necrotizing skin and soft tissue infection, and that many people with them require intensive care or surgical tissue removal.

Some people face higher risk. The CDC says medical conditions and treatments that can increase the risk of infection and severe complications include liver disease, cancer, diabetes, HIV or thalassemia, immune-suppressing therapy, medicine that lowers stomach acid, and recent stomach surgery. It advises people with an open wound to stay out of saltwater or brackish water if possible, including wading at the beach, to cover wounds with a waterproof bandage if they could contact coastal waters or raw seafood and its juices, and to wash wounds and cuts thoroughly with soap and clean running water right away after such contact.