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Laboratory Techniques Used to Maintain and Differentiate Biotypes of Vibrio cholerae Clinical and Environmental Isolates
07:58

Laboratory Techniques Used to Maintain and Differentiate Biotypes of Vibrio cholerae Clinical and Environmental Isolates

Published on: May 30, 2017

Occurrence of Vibrio cholerae serogroups other than O1 and O139 in Austria

Steliana Huhulescu1, Alexander Indra, Gebhard Feierl

  • 1Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES), Vienna, Austria. Franz.Allerberger@ages.at

Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift
|May 12, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections in Austria often manifest as otitis, not diarrhea. This suggests domestic cases may be underdiagnosed due to standard laboratory procedures for Vibrio cholerae.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections are increasingly documented globally.
  • Austria has reported cases of these infections, with varied clinical presentations.
  • Understanding the epidemiology and clinical manifestations of these infections is crucial for public health.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the documented cases of non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections in Austria from 2000 to 2005.
  • To investigate the clinical presentations and potential sources of infection.
  • To hypothesize reasons for the observed clinical manifestations and diagnostic challenges.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 13 documented non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections.
  • Review of patient data including age, sex, symptoms, and travel history.
  • Analysis of isolate sources and potential environmental exposures.

Main Results:

  • Twelve symptomatic infections were recorded, with diarrhea (n=5) and otitis (n=6) being the most common. A fatal septicemia case occurred in a fisherman.
  • Patients with infections acquired abroad predominantly presented with diarrhea (5/5).
  • Patients with no travel history outside Austria primarily had otitis (6/8), with some linked to Austria's largest lake.

Conclusions:

  • Non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections in Austria present with diverse symptoms, notably otitis in domestically acquired cases.
  • The prevalence of otitis over diarrhea in domestic cases may be due to under-recognition and diagnostic limitations in clinical microbiology.
  • Further investigation is needed to elucidate the reasons for differing clinical manifestations and improve diagnostic strategies for domestically acquired non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae infections.

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