Alberta Health Services asks the public to avoid raw shellfish

Alberta Health Services is investigating 10 cases in the Edmonton Zone of gastrointestinal illness potentially linked to raw oysters.

The people whose illnesses are currently under investigation experienced their symptoms between Jan. 10 and Jan. 12.

Dr. Joanna Oda, Edmonton zonemedical officer of health with Alberta Health Services, said investigators are still working to determine where the oysters came from.

"[The 10 people] all have a common source of having consumed oysters,"Oda said Friday. "We're still not sure about the actual source of those oysters."

Symptoms linkedto contaminated raw oysters or shellfish include watery diarrhea and abdominal cramps.

People can also experiencenausea, vomiting, fever, headache and bloody stools.

Oda said at this point AHS is not qualifying it as an outbreak.

"It's a cluster, because we don't know if the oysters came from the same source.

"And we don't know if the oysters are the actual source of these experiences. At this time we just know that this was the one common link between the 10."

To reduce the risk of illness, AHSadvises the public to eat only properly cooked shellfish. Oystersspecifically should be cooked to an internal temperature of 90 C for 90 seconds.

Mussels, oysters and scallops with shells that don't open after they are cook should be thrown out.

AHS also recommends wearing gloves while handling shellfish, and to always keep themrefrigerated.

People who develop symptoms within 10 to 50 hours after eating raw shellfish should contact the health link line at 811, AHS said.