Campylobacter diarrhea in Alexandria, Egypt.

The role of Campylobacter as a cause of bacterial diarrhea in young children in Alexandria, Egypt was investigated. Stools or rectal swabs were collected from 880 children (mean age 9.8 months) presenting to a hospital with the primary complaint of diarrhea and from 1,079 well children (mean age 8.8 months) attending a vaccination clinic. Isolation of Campylobacter was significantly (p<0.0002) more frequent from cases (17.2%) than from controls (6.4%). Campylobacter was isolated from children presenting with diarrhea more frequently than Salmonella (3% isolation rate), Shigella (2% isolation rate), or other bacterial pathogens (1% isolatoin rate). Isolation of Campylobacter was significantly more frequent during the rainy season (p<0.0012). These results implicate Campylobacter as a major bacterial cause of diarrhea for which young children are brought for medical attention in Alexandria, Egypt.