Human Yersinia enterocolitica infections in Wisconsin. Clinical, laboratory and epidemiologic features

Yersinia enterocolitica has been sought in stool and blood culture specimens by the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (SLH) since 1973. Clinical information on symptoms, duration of illness, and use of antibiotics for 41 persons with Y. enterocolitica infections from January 1, 1979, to September 30, 1980, was obtained by telephone interviews. Diarrhea and abdominal pain were the most common symptoms of the ill persons; extraintestinal symptoms were infrequently reported. Ten infected persons (24 percent) had no illness. Review of a 10 percent sample of all stool specimens cultured at the SLH from June 20, 1977, to June 20, 1979, revealed that Salmonella was the most commonly isolated enteric pathogen (15.4 percent) followed by Shigella (2.0 percent) and Y. enterocolitica (0.7 percent). Several different biotypes and serotypes of Y. enterocolitica were associated with illness. Y. enterocolitica isolates were uniformly susceptible to a wide variety of antibiotics, and most isolates were resistant to ampicillin. Epidemiologic studies showed that persons with Y. enterocolitica infections were more likely to live in rural counties than were all persons sending stool samples or those having Salmonella infections; underlying illness was identified as a risk factor for infection.