Is Escherichia coli O157:H7 a common pathogen in Children with Bloody Diarrhea in Shiraz, Iran?

Abdolvahab Alborzi, Mohammad Hassan Aelami, Behrooz Astaneh, Bahman Pourabbas, Shohreh Farshad, Mehdi Kalani, Jalil Nasiri, Mahmood Rashidi

Prof. Alborzi Clinical Microbiology Research Center, Nemazee Hospital, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

E.coli O157:H7 is a common cause of bloody diarrhea in developed countries .The aim of this study is to find whether E.coli O157:H7 is a possible pathogen of bloody diarrhea in southern Iran. Out of 719 children with diarrhea, 243(34%) patients with positive occult blood took part in our study. The polyclonal antibody test and PCR were used to identify E. coli O157:H7. Stool cultures showed enteropathogens in 107 patients (44%).Shigella (34.3%) followed by E.coli (8.6%), Campylobacter (2%) and Salmonella (0.4%). None of the E.coli species was of O157:H7 serotype. Antibiotic sensitivity to Shigella species were 100% to Ceftriaxone, Ciprofloxacin and Ceftazidime, 94% to Nalidixic acid and 13% to Co-Trimoxazole. The result of the study showed that E.coli O157:H7 is not a cause of bloody diarrhea in our area.

Kay words: E.coli O157:H7, bloody diarrhea, children