Pork and pork products as a source for human salmonellosis in Germany

Pork and pork products are increasingly recognized as an important source of human salmonellosis. In the present study, we describe the characteristics of recent German salmonellosis outbreaks related to pork, and discuss legal efforts for Salmonella control. From 2001 to 2005,five large salmonellosis outbreaks were reported in Germany for which pork was the probable vehicle of infection. Evidence came from epidemiologic studies, microbiologic testing, and trace back investigations. All outbreaks showed disperse spatial distribution, affecting multiple federal states. A full trace back of implicated food items was not possible in three of these outbreaks. In two outbreaks, international trade in pigs appears to have played a role. To prevent further human disease from contaminated pork and pork products, an integrated programme for the reduction of Salmonella on all steps of the production chain is warranted. In addition, close collaboration between epidemiologists and microbiologists from both the human and the veterinary side should be further strengthened.     

Poultry as a possible source of non-typhoidal Salmonella enterica serovars in humans in Bangladesh

We investigated Salmonella enterica isolates from human clinical cases of gastroenteritis to determine the distribution of non-typhoidal Salmonella serovars in the human population, and compared them to isolates originating from poultry by serotyping, phage typing, plasmid profiling, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) to evaluate the potential role of poultry in human non-typhoidal salmonellosis in Bangladesh. Nine different serovars were identified among the human isolates of which Salmonella Paratyphi B var Java (S. Java), S. Kentucky, S. Enteritidis, S. Virchow and S. Weltevreden also were commonly isolated from poultry. The poultry isolates belonging to S. Java, S. Kentucky and S. Enteritidis were indistinguishable from human isolates or genetically closely related, based on PFGE profiles and MLST. S. Kentucky clone ST198 and S. Java clone ST43 both well-known cause of human infections were also isolated from poultry.     

Poultry meat as a source of human campylobacteriosis

Campylobacteriosis is a prevalent diarrhoeal illness in humans, and poultry meat is considered the most important source of foodborne infection with Campylobacter spp. In this review, the disease burden of campylobacteriosis, the most important risk factors for Campylobacter colonization in broilers, and potential interventions to reduce poultry-related human exposure to Campylobacter spp. are discussed.     

The role of parameterization in comparing source attribution models based on microbial subtyping for salmonellosis

Source attribution methods attribute human cases of a zoonotic disease to a certain source putatively responsible for this disease. Identifying and quantifying the contribution of different sources to human infections is important for taking appropriate actions for reducing the exposure of the consumer to zoonotic pathogens. One widely used method is the microbial subtyping approach, whose principle is to compare the frequency of pathogen subtypes from different sources (e.g. animals or food) with the frequency of these subtypes in human cases. This paper studies the relationship between a Bayesian microbial subtyping approach described by Hald and coworkers subsequently modified by David and coworkers, here called the Hald model, and a frequentist approach known as the “Dutch model.” The comparison between the Bayesian and frequentist model is done for two data sets on salmonellosis in Germany from different time periods (year 2004–2007 and 2010–2011). The results of both approaches are in good agreement with each other for the used data. It is shown here mathematically that a certain parameterization can be used to transform the probabilistic Hald model into a deterministic form, which is equivalent to the Dutch model. That certain parameterization secures independence of the model outcomes from the choice of so‐called unique subtypes (which are unique in the sense that they are found exclusively in one of the sources). It is shown that deviating from that certain parameterization leads variations in the model outcome dependent on which unique subtypes are chosen in the process of modelling.     

Carpet deodorizer as a contact allergen in a dog

Allergic contact dermatitis was diagnosed in a 7-year-old dog. Clinical signs and history were consistent with a contact allergen being the cause of pruritic skin disease. Patch testing confirmed that carpet deodorizer was the allergen.