Dr. Lynn Cates
Specializing in pediatric infectious diseases and childhood immunizations.
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 Ask Dr. Cates
Raw chicken and Salmonella | | | QUESTION | | | Dear Dr. Cates,
I touched raw chicken with a cut on my finger. Does this mean I might have Salmonella?
-- Chris — Chris | | | ANSWER |
October 8, 2000 | | | Dear Chris,
You're right to be concerned about handling raw chicken carefully to decrease the risk of Salmonella infection. However, you're probably just fine--it is unlikely that you would contract such an infection through small cuts on your skin if you're in good health and washed your hands thoroughly soon after handling the chicken. In the future, it would be a good idea to wear disposable gloves when handling raw poultry if you have a cut on your hands. People who have depressed immune systems (for instance, if they're elderly or receiving chemotherapy for cancer) should be particularly careful if they have open wounds on their hands.
Salmonella infections usually are caused by eating under-cooked poultry or eggs, or other foods that have been contaminated by raw poultry or eggs. For example, if you handle raw chicken on a cutting board and then prepare salad vegetables on the same surface, you could contract Salmonella from eating the salad. So always cook poultry and eggs thoroughly, and make sure that you carefully wash your cutting board after using it to prepare poultry. Besides poultry and eggs, red meat, unpasteurized milk, and other dairy products also can harbor Salmonella bacteria, as can infected reptiles like snakes and turtles.
One word of caution: If the area around your cut becomes red, swollen, or painful, or if an unexplained fever develops, you should consult your healthcare provider as soon as possible, and mention that you have been exposed to raw poultry.
— by Lynn Cates, M.D., F.A.A.P. |
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