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. 1980 Apr;11(4):343–348. doi: 10.1128/jcm.11.4.343-348.1980

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli in central Canada.

J Brunton, D Hinde, C Langston, R Gross, B Rowe, M Gurwith
PMCID: PMC273402  PMID: 6989856

Abstract

During epidemiological studies carried out in urban and rural areas of the midwestern Canadian province of Manitoba, we cultured enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) from 16 (1.7%) of 945 diarrheal stools and 4 (0.3%) of 1,282 normal stools. ETEC was found in not more than 2.3% of diarrheal stools obtained from any population during any season. Diarrhea associated with ETEC persisted for a mean of 9 days. Two children were dehydrated and required intravenous fluid therapy, and one adult suffered a cholera-like syndrome. Half of the children required hospitalization for management of their diarrhea. Two adults and two children who harbored ETEC were completely asymptomatic. The pattern of toxin production correlated with serotype and the serotypes encountered were (with a few exceptions) similar to those found in other areas. We conclude that ETEC is an uncommon cause of diarrhea, both in rural and urban areas of central Canada. However, the possibility that ETEC might cause severe sporadic cases or epidemics of gastroenteritis remains.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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