Clinical and Laboratory Characteristics of Pediatric Campylobacter spp. Acute Gastroenteritis

Abstract

Background: Although Campylobacter strains are one cause of acute bacterial gastroenteritis, their clinical and laboratory findings have only been examined in a few studies. Objectives: This study was performed to evaluate the frequency level as well as the clinical and laboratory findings of patients with acute gastroenteritis caused by Campylobacter. Patients and Methods:In this cross-sectional study, 419 Iranian children in Semnan city with acute gastroenteritis were assessed for their clinical and laboratory findings, including fever, abdominal pain, vomiting, dehydration, the presence of red blood cells and white blood cells (WBCs) in the stool, and leukocytosis. After being prepared for testing, a sample of the patient's stool was also examined for the presence of Campylobacter strains through microscopic examination, culture, and chemical reactions.Results: There were 36 positive cultures (8.6%) for Campylobacter, with frequencies of 6.4% and 10.3% for boys and girls, respectively (P = 0.16). The highest frequency of positive culture belonged to the age group over six years (P = 0.02). The most common findings associated with Campylobacter diarrhea included abdominal pain (77.8% vs.1 8.8%, P < 0.001), fever (80.6% vs. 20.4, P < 0.001), leukocytosis (72.2% vs. 45.7%, P = 0.002), and WBCs in the stool (63.9% vs. 23.8%, P < 0.001). Conclusions: This study showed that abdominal pain, fever, leukocytosis, and WBCs in the stool were associated with gastroenteritis infection caused by Campylobacter.

<p>Multidrug-resistant <em>Shigella</em> infection in pediatric patients with diarrhea from central Iran</p>

“…A questionnaire and a consent form were provided to the parents, guardians and/or patients. The two main inclusion criteria were as follows: 1) completion of the consent form; and 2) direct observation of over five white blood cells per high-power microscope field (HPF) in a diarrhea sample 7. None of the patients had taken antibiotics in the week before hospitalization.…”

“…Although studies have found different frequencies and different Shigella species from north and south Iran,7–9 most reported phenotypic criteria such as frequency and antibiotic resistance profiles. In addition, Iran is a huge country with different climates in different geographical regions.…”

Global epidemiology of campylobacteriosis and the impact of COVID-19

“…In Central Iran, 33% (76/230) diarrheal stools from children were PCR positive for C. jejuni in 2015, among which most of the infections occurred in the age group of 1-3 years (Rastyani et al, 2015;Abbasi et al, 2019). Campylobacter infection was found to be more prevalent in girls in Semnan, contrary to that of Central Iran (Mazaheri et al, 2016;Abbasi et al, 2019).…”

“…The detection rates of C. jejuni in diarrheal patients from Mazandaran and East Azerbaijan in 2017 and 2016 were reported to be 27% (20/74) and 27.8% (62/223), respectively (Ranjbar et al, 2017;Divsalar et al, 2019). Mazaheri et al reported that in Semnan between 2014 and 2015, Campylobacter was isolated from stools of 8.6% (36/419) of children (1-12 years old) with diarrhea; children in age group 6-12 years were found to have the highest frequency of positive cultures (Mazaheri et al, 2016). Around the same time between 2013-2014 in Hamadan, 10% (12/120) of the diarrheal stool samples from children less than 10 years old had Campylobacter isolated.…”

“…Mazaheri et al. reported that in Semnan between 2014 and 2015, Campylobacter was isolated from stools of 8.6% (36/419) of children (1-12 years old) with diarrhea; children in age group 6-12 years were found to have the highest frequency of positive cultures ( Mazaheri et al., 2016 ). Around the same time between 2013-2014 in Hamadan, 10% (12/120) of the diarrheal stool samples from children less than 10 years old had Campylobacter isolated.…”