title: Risk factors associated with Campylobacter jejuni infections in Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles.
abstract: A steady increase in the incidence of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) with a seasonal preponderance, almost exclusively related to Campylobacter jejuni, and a rise in the incidence of laboratory-confirmed Campylobacter enteritis have been reported from Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. We therefore investigated possible risk factors associated with diarrhea due to epidemic C. jejuni. Typing by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis identified four epidemic clones which accounted for almost 60% of the infections. One hundred six cases were included in a case-control study. Infections with epidemic clones were more frequently observed in specific districts in Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao. One of these clones caused infections during the rainy season only and was associated with the presence of a deep well around the house. Two out of three GBS-related C. jejuni isolates belonged to an epidemic clone. The observations presented point toward water as a possible source of Campylobacter infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, The Netherlands. H.P.PENDTZ@ERASMUSMC.NL
authors.forename: Hubert P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Endtz
authors.forename: Hanneke
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: van West
authors.forename: Peggy C R
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Godschalk
authors.forename: Lidewij
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: de Haan
authors.forename: Yaskara
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Halabi
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: van den Braak
authors.forename: Barbara I
authors.initials: BI
authors.lastname: Kesztyüs
authors.forename: Ewald
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leyde
authors.forename: Alewijn
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ott
authors.forename: Roel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Verkooyen
authors.forename: Lawrence J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Price
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Woodward
authors.forename: Frank G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Rodgers
authors.forename: C Wim
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Ang
authors.forename: Rinske
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: van Koningsveld
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: van Belkum
authors.forename: Izzy
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gerstenbluth
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002169:Campylobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016123:Campylobacter jejuni / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D009427:Netherlands Antilles / Q000453:epidemiology; D012016:Reference Values; D012307:Risk Factors; D012703:Serotyping / Q000379:methods