An outbreak of shigellosis in a child care centre.
Outbreaks of shigellosis in child care are not commonly reported in Australia, however Shigella bacteria can easily spread in these settings. We report an outbreak of shigellosis in a child care centre and discuss the control measures implemented. This investigation identified 20 confirmed cases of Shigella sonnei biotype g and a further 47 probable cases in children and staff who attended a child care centre, and their household contacts. The investigation highlighted the importance of stringent control measures and protocols for dealing with outbreaks of Shigella and other enteric infections in the child care setting, and the importance of prompt notification by both doctors and child care centres, of suspected outbreaks.
Communicable Diseases Section, Department of Human Services, Melbourne, Victoria.
Dania
D
Genobile
Joanna
J
Gaston
Graham F
GF
Tallis
Joy E
JE
Gregory
Julia M
JM
Griffith
Mary
M
Valcanis
Diane
D
Lightfoot
John A
JA
Marshall
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002656:Child Day Care Centers; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004405:Dysentery, Bacillary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012499:Sanitation / Q000592:standards / Q000639:trends; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012764:Shigella sonnei / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014739:Victoria / Q000453:epidemiology