Diarrhea

Background: This study compared the diversity of common diarrhoeal pathogens and antimicrobial susceptibility in four hospitals in Bangladesh. Methodology: A total of 13,959 diarrhoea patients, comprising rural Mirzapur [2,820), rural Matlab (2,865), urban Dhaka (5,287) and urban Mirpur (2,987) were included under the diarrhoeal disease surveillance system of icddr,b during 2010-2011; stool specimens were tested for Shigella spp., Vibrio cholerae, enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli and rotavirus. Results: Rotavirus was highest in Mirzapur (28%) followed by Dhaka (24%), Matlab (19%) and Mirpur (18%). Overall, Shigella was significantly more prevalent in rural sites (Mirzapur 13% and Matlab 7%), than in urban sites (Dhaka 3% and Mirpur 3%). Vibrio cholerae was more common in the urban sites of Dhaka (14%) and Mirpur (12%). 72% of Shigella isolates were susceptible to ciprofloxacin in Mirzapur, and 88% to mecillinam. In Dhaka, the figures for Shigella were 65% and 50%, in Matlab 65% and ...

A commercial dog breeding unit experienced problems with acute diarrhoea, often haemorrhagic, in young German Shepherd Dog litters. No aetiologic diagnosis had been made. In order to determine whether coccidial infections were implicated, a survey was conducted to ascertain shedding of oocysts by dams, acquisition of coccidial infection by neonatal pups and to determine whether bouts of diarrhoea were associated with peak oocyst production. Oocysts of Isospora canis and I. burrowsi/I. ohioenis were recovered from 26.0% of faecal specimens from bitches and from 51.7% of similar specimens from litters. No association between shedding of oocysts by bitches and their litters could be demonstrated, nor was there consistent association between bouts of diarrhoea and peaks of oocyst shedding.

Blastocystis hominis, previously considered a harmless yeast, is now classified as a protozoan inhabiting the human intestinal tract. The pathogenicity of B. hominis remains controversial and is currently the subject of extensive debate.1- 5 As a result of the uncertainty surrounding the pathogenic role of B. hominis, large-scale treatment trials of B. hominis infection have so far been lacking. In spite of this, several drugs have been reported to be active against the parasite.6-8 The present study was carried out in order to evaluate the efficacy of metronidazole treatment in inducing clinical remission and parasitologic eradication in immunocompetent individuals with B. hominis as the only evident cause of diarrhea.

Diarrhoeal disease is a public health problem worldwide, mostly affecting children in developing countries. In Nicaragua, diarrhoea is the second greatest cause of infant mortality. During the period March 2005 to September 2006, a total of 526 faecal samples from children aged ...

The present study aimed to determine the effect of oral β-glucan on mucositis and leukopenia in 62 consecutive patients with colorectal cancer treated with an adjuvant FOLFOX-4 regimen. The patients were retrospectively evaluated in 2 groups: one group received β-glucan and the other did not (control group). Leucocytes, neutrophils, and platelets were evaluated before and 1 week after chemotherapy and oral mucositis and diarrhea were noted. Leucocyte and neutrophil counts after chemotherapy in the β-glucan group were 7,300/mm3 and 3,800/mm3, respectively, and the reductions, as compared to baseline, were not significant (p=0.673 and 0.784). The median platelet count was 264,000/mm3 after chemotherapy in the β-glucan group and the reduction, as compared to baseline, was borderline significant (p=0.048). In the control group, reduction in leucocyte, neutrophil, and platelet counts was statistically significant. Oral mucositis and diarrhea were less common in the β-glucan group. We con...

Forty-three Shigella sonnei isolates from adult patients with diarrhoea in Dakar were analysed for the presence of integrons. Isolates were resistant to sulphamethoxazole, trimethoprim, tetracycline, streptomycin and spectinomycin. A high prevalence of class 2 integrons (93%) was found. These integrons showed three distinct structures: a class 2 integron, part of the Tn7 family and its derivatives, carrying four cassettes in the order dfrA1-sat-aadA1-orfX; a truncated class 2 integron, without orfX; and a third type ca. 4 kb in size. These class 2 integrons probably play a role in the spread of multiresistance in S. sonnei isolates. To our knowledge, this is the first description of class 2 integrons in S. sonnei isolated in sub-Saharan Africa.

The impact of a water, sanitation and hygiene education intervention project on diarrhoeal morbidity in children under 5 years old was evaluated in a rural area of Bangladesh. Data were collected throughout 1984–1987, covering both pre-and post-intervention periods, from an ...

Characteristics on admission of children on standardised protocol (n=334) and non-protocol children (n=293) were similar except that more children on standardised protocol had oedema, acidosis, and Vibrio cholerae isolated from stools. 199 (59·9%) of children on ...