The extent of surface contamination of retailed chickens with Campylobacter jejuni serogroups.
Eighty-two chickens purchased at 11 retailers (supplied by 12 wholesalers) in the south of England were cultured for Campylobacter jejuni by a method involving total immersion. The organism was isolated from 22 (48%) of 46 fresh birds, 12 of 12 uneviscerated (New York dressed) birds, but only 1 of 24 frozen birds. Viable counts of up to 1.5 x 10(6)/chicken were obtained from fresh birds and 2.4 x 10(7)/chicken from uneviscerated birds. Surface swabbing of breasts, thighs, wings and vents of fresh chickens showed that contamination was generally distributed over the carcasses. Salmonellas were found in only 2 of 69 of the fresh chickens. The prevalence of several Lior and Penner C. jejuni serogroups was similar in chickens and sporadic human cases of enteritis. Penner serogroup 4 (mostly of Lior serogroup 1) was found in 26% of human isolates and 14% of chicken isolates. The rising incidence of campylobacter enteritis during the last 6 years could well be a reflection of the increasing proportion of fresh chickens consumed over that period (32% higher in 1986 than in 1981).
Hood
A M
AM
Public Health Laboratory, Southampton General Hospital, UK.
Pearson
A D
AD
Shahamat
M
M
D000818:Animals; D002169:Campylobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D002168:Campylobacter fetus / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002645:Chickens / Q000382:microbiology*; D004739:England; D004751:Enteritis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008460:Meat; D012703:Serotyping