An estimated of 1,648 people state wide have become ill, with most of the patients age 4 and younger. The disease has also hit parents and teachers, as well as kids and adults to visit day-care centers.
All but about 100 were in the region that includes St. Louis and surrounding counties, according to reports from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. The symptoms of the disease include diarrhea, headaches, nausea, vomiting, stomach aches and cramps and is treated with antibiotics.
Dr. Alexis Elward, an infectious disease specialist told CNN that this year's outbreak is much worse than in recent years. Before November, only nine cases were reported last year in the St. Louis area.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has expressed concern over the misdiagnoses of the actual number of patients, which may be 20 times greater. About 18,000 cases are reported in the U.S. each year.
