Christopher Tume*; Innocent Mbulli Ali*;
Karimo ousenu; Leonard Fonkeng Sama; Fonbah Leinyuy jude; Solange Dabou; Nadine Sylvie Ongbayokolak;
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ABSTRACT
Background: Gastroenteritis constitutes one of the major health burdens of infectious diseases throughout the world. It is one of the most common infectious diseases among humans and a major cause of mortality in low- income and middle- income countries. Objective was to investigate the bacterial aetiologies and associated risk factors of gastroenteritis among typhoid suspected cases. Methods: We used a questionnaire to collect information on clinical symptoms, exposure to associated risk factors, collected stool for culture and did biochemical characterization. Results: Of 556 patients, 74.28% tested positive for gastroenteritis. Among pathogens responsible for gastroenteritis, Escherichia coli was found to be the main cause (21.1%), followed by Salmonella typhi (10.4%). A significant difference (p=0.002) was observed between abdominal pain and all the microorganisms isolated from the patients. Patients having primary level of education were significantly associated (p=0.017; 3.163 (95% CI 1.228 to 8.147)) with the prevalence of gastroenteritis. Consumption of beverages (Wald statistic: 4.823; OR: 2.471; 95% CI (1.102 to 5.539); p=0.028), use of modern toilet (Wald statistic: 4.471; OR: 1.723; 95% CI (1.041 to 2.852); p=0.034) were strongly associated with gastroenteritis. Conclusion: Acute bacterial gastroenteritis is a significant cause of morbidity in Dschang, with the prevalence of 74.28%. E. coli (21.1%) could be a major cause, followed by S. typhi (10.4%). Gastroenteritis was highly associated with primary level of education, consumption of beverages, and use of modern toilet. Further characterization is planned.
Keys words: Etiology, Gastroenteritis, Bacteria, and Risk factors.
