Question

In his investigations of Typhoid Mary's role in the outbreak of Typhoid Fever in Oyster Bay, George Soper concluded that the most likely source of the contamination that led to the infection of the household members was

Answer 1

George Soper identified Mary Mallon, known as Typhoid Mary, as the asymptomatic carrier who contaminated food leading to Typhoid outbreaks. Her situation illustrates the public health issues concerning asymptomatic carriers and the spread of infectious diseases like Typhoid fever.

Step-by-step explanation:

In his examination of the Typhoid outbreaks in Oyster Bay, George Soper concluded that Mary Mallon, later known as Typhoid Mary, was the most likely source of the contamination. His findings determined that Mary was an asymptomatic carrier of the Salmonella enterica bacterium, which causes Typhoid fever. The pathogen is commonly spread through food or water contaminated with the infected individual's feces. Given that Mary Mallon was a cook and had direct contact with food, Soper established a direct link between her and the cases of Typhoid fever.

Mary herself never showed symptoms, which made it difficult for her to believe she was the contamination source, leading her to initially flee from the authorities. Despite her initial release on the condition that she never work with food again, she returned to cooking, leading to more infections and her final long-term quarantine. This case highlights the challenges in managing public health when dealing with asymptomatic carriers of infectious diseases.