Campylobacter enteritis in children in northern Taiwan--a 7-year experience.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Campylobacter infection is recognized as a major cause of acute enteritis in humans. The clinical characteristics may vary in different countries. This study investigated the clinical manifestations of pediatric Campylobacter enteritis in a medical center in northern Taiwan. METHODS This was a retrospective review of Campylobacter enteritis infections at National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, from January 2000 to December 2006. All children who tested positive for Campylobacter, isolated from stool samples, were included in the study. Data collected and evaluated included the species of Campylobacter, age, gender, underlying disease, travel history, clinical manifestations and laboratory data. RESULTS A total of 104 patients had enteric campylobacteriosis. Campylobacter coli was grown from 24 patients (23.1%), while Campylobacter jejuni was found in 80 patients (76.9%). More than half of the infections (60.6%) occurred in children less than 5 years old. The male-to-female ratio was 2.46:1. Fifteen patients had underlying diseases (14.4%), such as hematologic malignancy, solid organ transplantation and liver cirrhosis. Watery diarrhea (93.2%), abdominal pain (92.0%), fever (81.2%), and vomiting (46.1%) were the most common clinical manifestations. Three episodes of campylobacteriosis appeared to be imported from Southeast Asia and 3 were acquired nosocomially. One patient, who did not have any underlying disease, developed Campylobacter bacteremia. No Guillain-Barre syndrome was noted in our patients and none of our patients died due to campylobacteriosis. While both diseases had similar clinical manifestations, infections caused by C. coli seemed to be more severe than those caused by C. jejuni, as evidenced by a higher incidence of decreased activity and pus cells in the stool in patients infected with C. coli. CONCLUSION Even in patients with bacteremia or underlying disease, enteric campylobacteriosis usually runs a benign course regardless of treatment with antimicrobial agents in children in northern Taiwan.