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Association of Providencia alcalifaciens with diarrhea in children
M J Albert1, A S Faruque, D Mahalanabis
1International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, Dhaka. albert@icddrb.org
Insights
Providencia alcalifaciens is significantly associated with childhood diarrhea, though often co-occurs with other pathogens. Further research is needed to understand its specific role in diarrheal illness.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Providencia alcalifaciens is a known enteric pathogen.
- Previous studies suggest an invasive mechanism for diarrhea caused by this bacterium.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between Providencia alcalifaciens and diarrhea in young children.
- To determine the prevalence of P. alcalifaciens in diarrheal cases versus controls.
Main Methods:
- Stool specimens were collected from 814 diarrheal children under 5 years old and 814 matched controls.
- Isolation and identification of P. alcalifaciens from stool samples were performed.
- Statistical analysis was used to assess the significance of the association.
Main Results:
- P. alcalifaciens was isolated from 2.1% of diarrheal cases and 0.49% of controls (P = 0.004).
- A significant association was found between P. alcalifaciens isolation and childhood diarrhea.
- In 71% of P. alcalifaciens-positive diarrheal children, other enteric pathogens were also detected.
Conclusions:
- Providencia alcalifaciens is significantly associated with diarrhea in children under 5 years of age.
- The presence of P. alcalifaciens in diarrheal stools warrants further investigation into its pathogenic role.
- Co-infection with other enteric pathogens is common in children with P. alcalifaciens-associated diarrhea.
Abstract:
It has been demonstrated in previous studies that Providencia alcalifaciens can produce diarrhea by an invasive mechanism. In the present study, P. alcalifaciens was isolated from the stool specimens of 17 of 814 diarrheal children younger than 5 years of age (2.1%) and from those of 4 of 814 matched controls (0.49%) (P = 0.004), indicating that the organism is significantly associated with diarrhea. However, 71% of P. alcalifaciens-positive diarrheal children had simultaneous infections with other recognized enteric pathogens.