title: Phage typing and drug resistance of Shigella sonnei isolated in England and Wales.
abstract: Phage typing of Shigella sonnei has been used to examine isolates from the 1991-2 sonnei dysentery outbreak in England and Wales and compare them with strains isolated during and following a widespread foodborne outbreak in 1994 which was associated with consumption of imported lettuce. The distribution of phage types was different in the three periods studied with PT 3 predominating during 1991-2, PT 2 during the 'lettuce' outbreak in the summer months and PT 6 during the subsequent months. PT 6 was frequently associated with travel outside the UK. Variation was also seen in the distribution of drug resistance patterns.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, London.
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Bentley
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Frost
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rowe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001434:Bacteriophage Typing; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D004405:Dysentery, Bacillary / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D006801:Humans; D018545:Lactuca / Q000382:microbiology*; D012764:Shigella sonnei / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014195:Travel; D014852:Wales / Q000453:epidemiology