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A new E. coli O group O158 associated with an outbreak of infantile enteritis

B Rowe, R J Gross, R Lindop

    Journal of Clinical Pathology
    |October 1, 1974
    PubMed

    Insights

    A special care baby unit experienced an outbreak of acute diarrhea. Escherichia coli O158 was identified as the cause in six infants, leading to three deaths.

    Area of Science:

    • Neonatalogy
    • Infectious Disease Epidemiology
    • Microbiology

    Background:

    • Special care baby units are vulnerable settings for infant infections.
    • Acute diarrhea outbreaks pose significant risks to vulnerable neonates.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate an outbreak of acute diarrhea in a special care baby unit.
    • To identify the causative agent of the outbreak.

    Main Methods:

    • Epidemiological investigation of affected infants.
    • Microbiological analysis, including isolation and characterization of Escherichia coli strains.
    • Serotyping of bacterial isolates to determine O and H antigens.

    Main Results:

    • An outbreak of acute diarrhea affected six out of thirteen infants in the unit.
    • Three infants died as a consequence of the infection.
    • Escherichia coli with an unidentifiable O antigen and H23 flagellar antigen was isolated from all affected infants.
    • The previously unidentifiable O antigen was accepted into the international scheme as O158.

    Conclusions:

    • Escherichia coli O158 was identified as the causative agent of the outbreak.
    • The outbreak highlights the potential severity of bacterial infections in special care baby units.
    • Prompt identification and characterization of pathogens are crucial for outbreak control.

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