A baker cut his finger while slicing a cake. After a week, site of the injury is red and swollen, and begins draining pus. While preparing some custard pies, he contaminates the dish with drainage from the lesion. The pies were eaten a day later by customers of the restaurant. Within 4 hours they developed vomiting with no fever. Most likely cause?
High-Yield Explanation
This is the history of staphylococcal food poisoning. It is associated with consumption of milk and milk products containing preformed, heat-stable enterotoxin. The incubation period is less than six hours and main manifestation is vomiting.