A microbiological study of gastro-enteritis in Black infants

A survey was carried out to determine the aetiological agents responsible for acute gastro-enteritis in Black infants. Bacteriological examination of 191 patients and 178 age-matched controls showed that salmonellae and shigellae together accounted for only 15% of cases and were harboured by almost 7% of controls. Seropositive 'enteropathogenic' Escherichia coli was an important cause of diarrhoea, especially in the summer months. Enterotoxin-producing E. coli was not a significant cause of gastro-enteritis in this study. This study suggests that routine serotyping of E. coli from infantile gastro-enteritis should be continued until the relationship of serotype and enterotoxigenicity with enteropathogenicity has been established. Rotaviruses were detected by electron microscopy in 14,4% of children. The clinical features associated with the different infectious agents are described.