Cambridge University Press, Epidemiology and Infection, 2(145), p. 289-298, 2016
DOI: 10.1017/s0950268816001941
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SUMMARYSince April 2015, whole genome sequencing (WGS) has been the routine test forSalmonellaidentification, surveillance and outbreak investigation at the national reference laboratory in England and Wales. In May 2015, an outbreak ofSalmonellaEnteritidis cases was detected using WGS data and investigated. UK cases were interviewed to obtain a food history and links between suppliers were mapped to produce a food chain network for chicken eggs. The association between the food chain network and the phylogeny was explored using a network comparison approach. Food and environmental samples were taken from premises linked to cases and tested forSalmonella. Within the outbreak single nucleotide polymorphism defined cluster, 136 cases were identified in the UK and 18 in Spain. One isolate from a food containing chicken eggs was within the outbreak cluster. There was a significant association between the chicken egg food chain of UK cases and phylogeny of outbreak isolates. This is the first publishedSalmonellaoutbreak to be prospectively detected using WGS. This outbreak in the UK was linked with contemporaneous cases in Spain by WGS. We conclude that UK and Spanish cases were exposed to a common source ofSalmonella-contaminated chicken eggs.