The South Carolina Department of Public Health has confirmed 30 confirmed cases of Cyclosporiasis in the state as of the latest official count on July 21st. According to department officials, none of these cases, as of now, are connected to the national outbreak Cyclospora outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce.
A national outbreak was recognized by the CDC after Taylor Farms, a leading salad producer, initiated a recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico on July 17. As of this writing, at least 1,947 cases are confirmed in connection to the national outbreak in nine states nationally. South Carolina is not included.
Buchanan says state public health officials review food history of the individual and the patient gets tested for Cyclosporiasis.
"At the state level, we cannot tell if this person [is] connected to all the other cases in the country," Buchanan says, "so [the] lab specimen gets sent to the CDC for further examination to see if it looks like the [strain] that's making the other people sick in the other states."
Cyclosporiasis is a diarrheal illness caused by the Cyclospora cayetanensis parasite, a parasite not commonly found in South Carolina.
Officials say these numbers are on par with those of the past two years. There were 24 cases confirmed in 2025 and 25 cases confirmed in 2024. According to DPH, "South Carolina has averaged about 50 Cyclosporiasis cases per year."
Cases typically spike in the spring and summer months. Dr. Martha Buchanan is the Director of the Bureau of Communicable Disease Prevention and Control. She says, "May 1 through August 31st is when we see [most] cases."
In regards to treating Cyclosporiasis, Buchanan says treatment with the cases that typically happen and the strain causing the national outbreak are similar.
"A lot of people will recover without treatment, and your doctor may decide to treat you with an antibiotic that helps," she says.
All patients with the illness are encouraged to stay hydrated and eat solid foods if they are not experiencing vomiting.
Buchanan says consumers should not change their shopping patterns.
"Those products should not be on the shelf in the grocery store anymore," she says, "but if you have [lettuce] in your fridge, you might want to [make] sure it's not one of those products and throw it away."
She says washing lettuce already in your fridge is not needed and to immediately throw it away. As for ordering a salad when eating out, Buchanan says, "they're no longer distributing to the restaurants either."
Safe food handling practice is always advised, regardless of a national outbreak. Washing fresh produce, even if you plan on peeling it, is advised by public health officials.
Buchanan says public health officials will continue the usual surveillance of this disease, but are not doing any "special monitoring." She says experts are "following the national cases and getting on calls [when] the CDC has a nationwide call."
Buchanan says officials are communicating with regional and national partners. The South Carolina Department of Public Health will follow the outbreak and will continue to update and inform the public on any new findings. Anyone experiencing symptoms—stomach cramps, muscle aches, vomiting, nausea, low-grade fever—should contact their doctor for appropriate testing.
