Epidemiology and genetic screening of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli among symptomatic and asymptomatic children
2019
Purpose. Enteropathogens are frequently associated with diarrheal disease. Knowledge of their etiology and epidemiology is essential for the prevention and control of the sickness. This study describes the microbiological and epidemiological features of diarrheal disease in 197 symptomatic and 223 asymptomatic under-five-year-old children from southeastern Brazil, between January 2015 and September 2016.
Methods. Isolation of
Escherichia coli
,
Salmonella
,
Shigella
and
Campylobacter
was realized by culture.
E. coli
strains were screened by multiplex PCR, PFGE and O:H serotyping. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was also performed.
Results. Most of the 127 enteropathogens isolated were diarrheagenic
E. coli
(96.1 %), with predominance of several serotypes of enteropathogenic
E. coli
(EPEC) and enteroaggregative
E. coli
(EAEC). Age, sex, rotavirus vaccination, recent use of antibiotics and previous contact with pets, were factors that revealed no significant effects on the probability of infection by the predominant pathogens. Even so, higher incomes could be related to a lesser chance of testing positive for EPEC. Evidence of possible EAEC clonal spread was detected, as well as genetic similarity among strains from both symptomatic and asymptomatic children. Resistance to antimicrobial agents was more pronounced among EAEC than EPEC.
Conclusion. The occurrence of genetically similar diarrheagenic
E. coli
in both groups of children, likewise resistant to these agents, underscores the importance of establishing strategies for the prevention of outbreaks, especially among low-income households.
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