Excerpt from Escherichia Coli Infections
Synonyms, Key Words, and Related Terms: Escherichia coli infections, E coli infections, Escherichia coli, E coli, colibacillus, diarrhea, diarrheal illness
Background
Escherichia coli, a facultatively anaerobic gram-negative bacillus, is a major component of the normal intestinal flora and ubiquitous in the human environment. First described in 1885, E coli has become recognized as both a harmless commensal and a versatile pathogen.
Pathophysiology
In contrast to the essential and beneficial role of most E coli isolates in the human intestine, pathogenic E coli are responsible for a broad spectrum of human disease. E coli has emerged as an important cause of diarrheal illness, with diverse phenotypes and pathogenic mechanisms. Hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS) is a potentially devastating consequence of enteric infection with specific E coli strains. E coli also is a commonly identified cause of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and neonatal sepsis and meningitis.
Frequency
United States
Statistics on pathogenic E coli strains reflect increasing recognition and surveillance during the past 2 decades. Recent estimates suggest that more than 100,000 illnesses annually are attributable to shiga-toxin–producing E coli, up to 50% of which are strains other than O157:H7. Enterotoxigenic and other diarrheagenic E coli strains in combination cause an estimated 150,000 or more illnesses annually.
International
Many strains of diarrheagenic E coli primarily affect developing nations. Statistics on the prevalence of the strains vary by location. Worldwide, enterotoxigenic E coli, in particular, are estimated to cause more than 600 million cases of diarrhea annually and 700,000 deaths in children younger than 5 years.
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