Isolation of Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni from Bangladeshi children

Abstract

To determine the prevalence of infection with C. fetus ssp. jejuni in Bangladesh, culture surveys were conducted among 3 populations. In Dacca, Campylobacter was isolated from 5.2% of 97 individuals with clinical dysentery and from 12.3% of 204 patients with only diarrhea. This difference may have resulted from a greater representation of young children in the 2nd group. Campylobacter was isolated from 17.7% of the 141 healthy village children aged 1-5.5 yr and from 38.8% of the 1 yr old children. More infected children (48%) had a history of recent diarrheal illness than did a group of matched controls (20%; P = 0.016). These findings suggest that campylobacter infection is common for Bangladeshi children. This organism may not cause diarrheal illness in all instances in which it is isolated.