Enteric bacteria isolated from acute diarrheal patients in the Republic of Korea between the year 2004 and 2006.
In an epidemiological survey of human enterobacterial infections in the Republic of Korea during three years from 2004 to 2006, we isolated 1,784 (6.2%, isolation rate of enteropathogens from stool samples) in 2004, 2,547 (9.5%) in 2005 and 3,506 bacteria (12.3%) from people who visited clinics. Among the isolated bacteria, pathogenic Escherichia coli, especially, EAEC was the most frequently identified pathogen in both urban and rural regions followed by Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella species, Bacillus cereus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Campylobacter jejuni, Clostridium perfringens, and Shigella species. Distinct seasonality was found in V. parahaemolyticus species, while this pathogen showed no age-specific patterns. However, other bacteria, i.e., pathogenic E. coli, S. aureus, Salmonella spp., and B. cereus showed similar seasonality throughout the year, showing a slight increase in the infection rate during the summer months and high prevalence among children under 10 years of age and elder-age people. The antibiotic susceptibility patterns of pathogenic E. coli, Salmonella spp., and S. aureus showed high resistance to penicillins. However, both pathogenic E. coli and Salmonella spp. were susceptible to several cephems, imipenem, and amikacin. Moreover, S. aureus strains resistant to vancomycin were not found. In conclusion, these surveillances can play an important role for the control and prevention to the diseases originated by enteritis bacteria.
Cho
Seung-Hak
SH
Division of Enteric Bacterial Infections, Center for Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Health, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Shin
Hyun-Ho
HH
Choi
Yeon-Hwa
YH
Park
Mi-Sun
MS
Lee
Bok-Kwon
BK
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000382:microbiology*; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004756:Enterobacteriaceae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012621:Seasons; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents