SIERRA VISTA - Health officials have hit a roadblock with a local salmonella investigation, and they're asking for the community's help.

"We're having a problem in that we've not heard from some of the key people that we've contacted," said Karla Jensen, spokeswoman for the county Health Department.

While members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have talked to people who were sick with salmonella, they need to hear from those who haven't been sick but could be linked to the same environment as the person with salmonella.

"In order to conduct an accurate study, we need to make those comparisons," Jensen said. "These people have been contacted and they know who they are, but they're not returning our calls."

All those who have been contacted by the health department in the past couple of weeks are urged to call the department's hot line, 432-9405. All calls and information are kept confidential.

Without the additional information, it's impossible to reach concrete conclusions about a common source or how the salmonella is spread, Jensen said. Lack of information is the reason the study has been taking so long to complete, she added.

The CDC team has been in the area for nearly a month, assisting local health officials with the investigation.

To date, the state health department is reporting 48 confirmed cases of Salmonella Oranienburg in the Sierra Vista area since Sept. 1. In addition, health officials have confirmed three new cases of salmonella, but the exact type has not been determined. If any of those three are Oranienburg, they will be added to the existing count.

"For purposes of this study, we're only interested in the Oranienburg strain," Jensen said.

Salmonella can cause such symptoms as inflammation of the intestine or colon, abdominal cramps, fever and diarrhea, sometimes with blood.

The disease usually causes mild illness in healthy adults, but it can be more severe in the very young, elderly and anyone with a compromised immune system. Anyone exhibiting these symptoms should contact a local health care provider.

Meanwhile, the county Health Department reminds residents to practice good hygiene by diligently washing hands after using the restroom, changing soiled diapers and handling raw meats.

To prevent potential cross-contamination with raw meat, health officials urge residents to clean hands and surfaces thoroughly before handling other foods.

In addition, wash hands well after handling reptiles.