Abstract
From Feb. through Oct. 1979, 23 cases of NM occurred in the Special Care Nursery Units (SCNU) at Roosevelt Hospital in Guatemala City, Guatemala; 16 of these were caused by one serotype: Salmonella enteritidis type Poona. All cases were fulminant in onset and resulted in 100% mortality.
No cases were found in infants less than 48 hours of age. Symptoms were characterized by acute onset of lethargy (93%), seizures (53%), full fontanelle (33%), vomiting (20%) and irritability (20%). Only 13% had fever or diarrhea. The organism was resistant to all antibiotics tested except chloramphenicol by the Kirby-Bauer method.
Bacterial surveillance studies suggested that the epidemic was introduced either by maternal-infant colonization or from other hospital units into the SCNU. The outbreak was controlled by strict cohorting and strict handwashing. No further cases of neonatal disease due to this serotype occurred in the SCNU despite continuing evidence of disease in the community.
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Cabrera-Meza, G., Meneses, L., Rosales, J. et al. 482 UNUSUAL CAUSE OF NEONATAL MENINGITIS (NM): SALMONELLA ENTERITIDIS SEROTYPE POONA. REPORT OF A NOSOCOMIAL OUTBREAK. Pediatr Res 15 (Suppl 4), 520 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198104001-00495
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198104001-00495
