title: Profile of Culture Positive Enteric Fever from Bangalore.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Enteric fever is endemic in India. The aim of this study was to analyse the clinical, laboratory, antibiotic sensitivity profile and response to antibiotics of culture positive enteric fever patients from Bangalore.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this retrospective study only culture positive enteric fever patients were taken and their clinical, laboratory, antibiotic sensitivity profile and the clinical response to antibiotics studied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty one culture positive enteric fever patients were taken into the study. Presenting symptoms included fever, pain abdomen (18.5%), loose stools (25%), vomiting (33%) and headache (30%). Absolute bradycardia at admission was not found in any of our patients. Normal or low total leucocyte count was seen in 97.5%. Typhoid hepatitis was seen in 8.5%. Salmonella enterica subspecies enterica serovar typhi (S typhi) were isolated in 80% of cases; 83% of all cases showed nalidixic acid resistance. All isolates were sensitive to chloramphenicol and third generation cephalosporins. Ciprofloxacin resistance was found in 19% cases. The time to defervescence in patients treated with ceftriaxone was 4.3 days. There was no statistical difference in time to defervescence in nalidixic acid resistant and sensitive strains. Complications included gastro intestinal bleed and encephalopathy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Prevalence of nalidixic acid resistance is high, while clinical resistance to quinolones may be higher than that found in the laboratory which requires detailed study. Chloramphenicol sensitivity has returned and nalidixic acid resistant and sensitive isolates are uniformly sensitive to third generation cephalosporins with no difference in time to defervescence.
authors.affiliation: Classified Specialist (Medicine and Neurology), Command Hospital Air Force, Agram PO, Bangalore - 560007.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: (Medicine and Pulmonology), Command Hospital Air Force, Agram PO, Bangalore - 560007.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Handa
authors.affiliation: (Medicine and Cardiology), Command Hospital Air Force, Agram PO, Bangalore - 560007.
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Chadha
authors.affiliation: Ex Commandant, Command Hospital Air Force, Agram PO, Bangalore - 560007.
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Ganjoo
authors.affiliation: Senior Advisor (Medicine), 7 Air Force Hospital, Nathu Singh Road, Kanpur -UP.
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Panda
keywords: Ciprofloxacin resistance; Enteric fever; Nalidixic acid resistance; Time to defervescence