By: Elise Plunk-August 26, 2025 Louisiana Illuminator
State officials have clarified information initially made public Tuesday about an increase in deaths and illnesses related to a flesh-eating bacteria. Most people have been infected when their open wounds have been exposed to water with the pathogen, but some cases might have involved people who ate oysters harvested in Louisiana.
The Louisiana Health Department clarified that 22 Louisiana residents have been hospitalized so far this year after being infected with vibrio vulnificus, a bacteria that thrives in warm, brackish waters. Four of those illnesses resulted in the deaths of Louisiana residents, and two people from outside the state who reportedly ate Louisiana oysters died.
The two most recent deaths were people who had eaten Louisiana oysters at separate restaurants — one in Louisiana and another in Florida – according to Jennifer Armentor, molluscan shellfish program administrator from the Louisiana Department of Health.
Armentor shared information about the vibrio-related deaths Tuesday during a regular meeting of the Louisiana Oyster Task Force, held at New Orleans Lakefront Airport. She reiterated in a call Wednesday morning that the fatalities involved people who ate oysters, but she did not confirm whether they were the source of the vibrio infection.
No information was provided on where the deceased had eaten.
State officials have yet to specify whether the four Louisiana vibrio deaths involved exposure to the bacteria through open wounds or from eating raw seafood. On July 31, the state reported four deaths and 17 hospitalizations attributed to vibrio infections. The count has increased to 22 hospitalizations as of Tuesday.
Vibrio infections and deaths are generally rare, but cases linked to Louisiana are spiking this year above the average annual rate of seven infections and one death since 2015. Scientists say it’s hard to pinpoint exactly why this is happening.
“Numbers are typically so low, any change looks disproportionate,” said Dr. Salvador Almagro-Moreno, an associate faculty member at St. Jude Children’s Hospital with expertise in vibrio infections. “Nonetheless, the trend over the past few decades is quite clear: The number of cases has been steadily and consistently increasing, and from these recent outbreaks, they do not seem to be on decline.”
Flesh-eating bacteria in coastal waters are more common during the summer months when warmer waters provide better living conditions for vibrio. Direct wound exposure to brackish waters or eating oysters harvested from such areas increases the likelihood of coming into contact with these naturally occurring bacteria.
“You can almost watch it spread,” Paul Gulig, professor emeritus and microbiologist at the University of Florida, said in an interview.
The infection is known as “flesh-eating” for good reason, he said. Nausea, vomiting and chills are all symptoms from consuming the bacteria, while wound exposure can cause severe redness and swelling, with infected patients sometimes needing limb amputation to save their lives.
“If you put a mark with a pen around the edge of the redness, and you came back an hour or two later, it would have moved significantly,” Gulig said.
Different health factors can worsen vibrio infections, including stomach and liver conditions, a weakened immune system and pregnancy, according to the state health department.
Open wounds have created the biggest risk in this year’s vibrio infections, according to state health data.
According to the state health department, 18 of the 22 hospitalizations for vibrio infections were people with direct wound exposure to brackish waters.
Gulig confirmed this trend, saying research shows wound infections have overtaken eating raw oysters as the top way of getting infected over the past 20 years.
Mitch Jurisich, chairman of the Louisiana Oyster Task Force and a Plaquemines Parish oyster farmer, said it’s critical for consumers to know all the risks involved.
“We want the public to know about safety with oysters, but there’s other ways of getting [vibrio infections],” Jurisich said, adding that people with certain health conditions should avoid raw seafood.
Different factors – such as warmer Gulf temperatures, saltwater intrusion or even more people swimming and eating oysters – could be behind the spike in cases, Jurisich added
It could also just be chance, according to Gulig.
“Just like rolling dice, sometimes you get snake eyes three times in a row and there’s nothing that really explains that, other than just kind of random chance,” the microbiologist said. “This could be kind of a random thing.”