title: [Shigellosis or bacillary dysentery].
abstract: Shigellosis, commonly known as bacillary dysentery, is an enterobacterial disease caused by the Shigella genus, which now belongs to the Escherichia tribe, because of their genetic and phenotypic similarities. S. sonnei, flexneri, boydii and dysenteriae differ in their epidemiologic and pathogenic characteristics. S. sonnei is predominant in industrialized countries and causes the mildest disease. S. dysentery is especially dangerous because it occurs in outbreaks, sometimes in catastrophic situations, and has a high mortality rate. Shigellosis typically causes watery diarrhea followed by dysentery. It may be associated with a variety of mild to severe or even life-threatening complications. Shigellosis is a significant public health problem in developing countries where it remains a major cause of diarrhea-related morbidity and mortality, especially among children. Annual cases worldwide are estimated at 160 million. Shigellosis is a highly contagious disease of poor and crowded communities, with fecal-oral (hand-to-mouth) transmission, and an extremely low minimum infectious dose. Multidrug resistance is a serious problem. Ciprofloxacin is the first-line antibiotic, recommended for 3 days. Prevention and control should include personal hygiene, hand washing, sanitation, and water supply. No vaccine is available, but several candidates are currently being evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Service de médecine interne et maladies infectieuses, Hôpital Clermont-Tonnerre, Brest. xfnicolas@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Nicolas
authors.forename: Hervé
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Granier
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Le Guen
mesh_terms: D004405:Dysentery, Bacillary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans