SAN JOSE — A San Jose woman recently underwent a quadruple amputation, but it remained unclear Wednesday what disease or infection may have forced the procedure.

A statement released by the County of Santa Clara Public Health Department  contradicted the claims of a GoFundMe fundraiser, which said the 40-year-old mother, Laura Barajas, was forced to undergo a quadruple amputation procedure last week after contracting the flesh-eating bacterial infection Vibrio from fish she purchased at a San Jose supermarket. The page, posted Friday, has since gone viral, garnering coverage in People Magazine, Daily Mail, USA Today and Page Six.

As of Wednesday morning, it had raised more than $108,000 for Barajas.

In a statement, the County Public Health Department said that based off media reports, it identified a hospitalized patient matching the description Tuesday, and requested that the hospital notify the Public Health Department if there was suspicion of any disease it were legally required to report.

“Preliminary information has now been received regarding this individual, confirming that no laboratory tests are positive for Vibrio. Several different diseases including but not limited to Vibrio can cause tragic clinical outcomes like this one,” the agency said. “Public Health is actively investigating to confirm if a cause of this illness can be identified.”

County and state health officials have told the Bay Area News Group that no cases of Vibrio-related infections have been reported to their respective agencies. In Santa Clara County, all Vibrio infections are required to be reported by medical providers within one business day of diagnosis.

The actual illness and cause for the amputations remain unclear.

In a text message to this news organization, the organizer of the GoFundMe page, Anna Messina, said she based the description of Baraja’s condition on an “initial diagnosis,” but added she has not received any updates from the family since.

Attempts to reach the Barajas family on Wednesday were unsuccessful. As of midday Wednesday, the fundraiser was still accepting donations.

According to the CDC, Vibrio is a bacteria that causes about 80,000 illnesses in the United States per year. About 150-200 of those become Vibrio Vulnificus, which kills about one-fifth of infected patients. This specific infection is usually contracted through open wounds, the CDC said, but about 10% of infections can be caused by eating undercooked fish.

The CDC issued a warning about the disease on Sept. 1, warning healthcare providers about a recent uptick in cases through wound and foodborne infections.

The recent rise in Vibrio infections has been attributed to a rise in temperature in ocean waters, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Stanley Deresinski, a clinical professor of medicine specializing in infectious diseases at Stanford Health Care, said prevalence of the bacteria should only increase as climate change persists.

“The numbers of cases has been increasing and climate change is likely playing a role,” he said.

Shellfish is the most common way to contract the bacteria through consumption, but it has shown to spread in fish through aqua-farms, according to Deresinski. With fish packed in a tight, contained body of water for the purpose of farming for consumption, waterborne bacteria can spread rapidly.

“They’re all exposed to the same water, to an extent,” he said. “There would be multiple such fish infected.”

The bacteria thrives in warmer waters, primarily on the coasts of the Gulf Coast states according to the CDC, mainly between the months of May and October. Amputation is necessary in particularly aggressive cases.

“When you ingest the vibrio vulnificus it could rapidly invade the body and cause systemic illness to the patient,” Deresinski said. “As the organism spreads through the body they may have complications including ones leading to losing your limbs.”

According to the GoFundMe, the money raised from the online fundraiser will go toward Baraja’s medical expenses.

“This family is in desperate need of our help. While Jose has health benefits through his work, it remains uncertain whether they will cover Laura, his partner of eight years,” the post reads.T”he mounting hospital bills are overwhelming, and Laura’s physical condition will necessitate significant changes to their lives as they adapt to her new circumstances.”