al-Eissa Y, al-Zamil F, al-Kharashi M, Kambal A, Chowdhury M, al-Ayed I. The relative importance of Shigella in the aetiology of childhood gastroenteritis in Saudi Arabia.
SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES 1992;
24:347-51. [PMID:
1509239 DOI:
10.3109/00365549209061341]
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Abstract
The role of shigella infection in childhood gastroenteritis was studied over a 2-year period. Shigella species were found in the faecal specimens of 70 (1%) of 7369 children with gastroenteritis, but in only 1 (0.1%) of 1130 controls. S. flexneri was the commonest isolate (51%), followed by S. sonnei (37%). Most shigella species were isolated during the winter. The prevalence of shigellosis was highest for children 1-5 years of age but equal for both sexes. Fever, abdominal cramps, vomiting, and bloody diarrhoea were the predominant clinical features. Of the shigella isolates, 73% were resistant to cotrimoxazole, 43% to ampicillin, and 41% to chloramphenicol. One-third of isolates were resistant to greater than or equal to 3 antibiotics. All isolates were susceptible to nalidixic acid. The illness was mild and self-limiting and most patients recovered without antimicrobial therapy.
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