It's official. On September 11, the CDC closed its investigation into the cyclospora outbreak that defined this summer — the one traced to iceberg lettuce processed by Taylor Farms de Mexico. The final tally: 12,883 confirmed illnesses across 21 states, at least 570 hospitalizations, and two deaths in Michigan. The contaminated lettuce is long past its shelf life and is no longer in stores or restaurants, which is why the agency called it over.
Over for the country, though, is not the same as over for you. If you spent part of July or August fighting this thing, there are two facts worth knowing before you file the whole miserable episode away.
The CDC notes that infections picked up during the outbreak will keep getting reported for up to six weeks after symptoms begin, as stragglers get tested and results work through state health departments. So if you got sick recently and your doctor confirms cyclospora, you're not an oddity — you're the tail end of a very long curve.
Here's the part that catches people off guard. With most stomach bugs, once the diarrhea stops, you're done. Cyclosporiasis plays by different rules: when it goes untreated, symptoms can appear to clear up entirely — and then return days or weeks later, sometimes more than once. People think they're cured, resume normal life, and get knocked flat again.
That's why "waiting it out" is a bad strategy with this particular parasite. Diagnosis requires a stool test that specifically looks for cyclospora (standard tests can miss it), and clearing the infection usually takes a prescription antibiotic — typically trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. If your symptoms faded and have now crept back, or your diarrhea has dragged on past a few days, call your doctor and mention the outbreak. This is not something an over-the-counter product can fix, ours included.
Then there's the problem almost nobody discusses at the follow-up appointment. Weeks of watery diarrhea are brutal on the gut — and on everything past it. Urgent, frequent trips to the bathroom mean constant wiping, straining, and sitting, and that combination is a reliable recipe for a hemorrhoid flare-up: swelling, burning, itching, and skin rubbed raw at the worst possible spot.
If your infection is treated and gone but your backside is still holding a grudge, a simple repair routine helps:
The outbreak made 12,883 people's summers worse. Don't let its aftermath run your fall — treat the infection properly with your doctor, and give the collateral damage some deliberate care.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Revivol-XR products are intended for the temporary relief of hemorrhoid symptoms only; they do not treat, cure, or prevent cyclosporiasis or any infection or disease. If you suspect you have a cyclospora infection, see a healthcare provider for testing and treatment.