Salmonella serovars and antimicrobial resistance profiles in beef cattle, slaughterhouse personnel and slaughterhouse environment in ethiopia.

The present study was undertaken to determine the occurrence, distribution and antimicrobial resistance profiles of Salmonella serovars in slaughter beef cattle, slaughterhouse environment and personnel engaged in flaying and evisceration during slaughtering process. A total of 800 samples (each sample type, n = 100) consisting of swabs from hides, slaughterhouse personnel hands at flaying and evisceration, rumen and caecal contents, mesenteric lymph nodes, carcasses and holding pens were collected. Of the total 100 beef cattle examined, 14% were Salmonella positive in caecal content and/or mesenteric lymph nodes. Of the various samples analysed, Salmonella was detected in 31% of hides, 19% of rumen contents, 8% of mesenteric lymph nodes, 6% of caecal contents, 2% of carcass swabs, 9% of palm swabs taken from the hands of personnel in the slaughterhouse during flaying (7%) and evisceration (2%), and in 12% of holding pen swabs. The Salmonella isolates (n = 87) belonged to eight different serovars of which S. Anatum (n = 54) and S. Newport (19) were the major serovars and both serovars were detected in all sample sources except in carcass swabs. Eighteen of the 87 (20.7%) Salmonella serovars consisting of Newport (n = 14), Anatum (n = 3) and Eastbourne (n = 1) were resistant to one or more antimicrobials. Among the antimicrobial resistant Salmonella serovars, S. Newport was multidrug resistant (15.6%) and exhibited resistance to streptomycin, sulphisoxazole and tetracycline.

The characterization of Salmonella serovars isolated from apparently healthy slaughtered pigs at Addis Ababa abattoir, Ethiopia.

We looked for Salmonella in all 278 apparently healthy pigs slaughtered between September 2004 and May 2005 at the only pig-slaughtering slaughterhouse in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We used standard methods and tested caecal contents, mesenteric lymph nodes, and carcass swabs from each pig (missing only one carcass swab). Of the 278 pigs, 120 (43%) were positive; of the 833 samples 173 (21%) were positive. Thirty-three percent of the isolates were multi-resistant (including 46/48 isolates of S. Hadar, but none of the 39 isolates of S. Eastbourne or of the 37 of S. Saintpaul). Resistance to streptomycin (32.4%), tetracycline (31.8%) and nitrofurantoin (27.2%) was relatively high. The most common pattern of MDR observed was to nitrofurantoin, streptomycin and tetracycline (Resistance type NitStrTet). Our results indicate that salmonellae are prevalent in pigs slaughtered at Addis Ababa abattoir and a large proportion of the isolates were multi-drug resistant.

Multidrug resistance and distribution of Salmonella serovars in slaughtered pigs.

The present study was undertaken to estimate the occurrence and distribution of multidrug resistance (MDR) among Salmonella serovars isolated from slaughtered pigs at Debre Zeit, Ethiopia. A total of 501 different samples were examined of which 42 (41.6%) of 101 mesenteric lymph nodes, 22 (21.8%) of 101 tongues, 17 (16.8%) of 101 caecal contents, 11 (11.1%) of 99 livers and two (2%) of 99 muscle (diaphragm and abdomen) samples were Salmonella positive. Of the 94 Salmonella isolates representing 15 different serovars, 69 (73.4%) were multidrug resistant (resistance to two or more antimicrobials). Among the Salmonella serovars a high level of MDR was observed in S. Hadar, S. Kentucky, S. Blockley and S. Enteritidis mainly to tetracycline (88.6%), streptomycin (82.9%), nitrofurantoin (74.3%), nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin (42.9% each), sulfisoxazole (21.1%) and spectinomycin (20%). The pattern of MDR varied from two to eight antimicrobials among the resistant Salmonella serovars. The common profiles of resistance among the MDR serovars were the combined resistance to nitrofurantoin, streptomycin and tetracycline (R type NitStrTet, 51.4%), ciprofloxacin, nalidixic acid and nitrofurantoin (R type CipNalNit, 10%), ciprofloxacin, nalidixic acid, spectinomycin, streptomycin, sulfisoxazole and tetracycline (R type CipNalSptStrSulTet, 14.3%) and to ciprofloxacin, kanamycin, nalidixic acid, neomycin, nitrofurantoin, streptomycin and tetracycline (R type CipKanNalNeoNitStrTet, 10%). Results of the present study indicate the widespread occurrence and distribution of MDR Salmonella serovars in slaughtered pigs which could be a potential source of human MDR Salmonella infections.

Occurrence and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella serovars in apparently healthy slaughtered sheep and goats of central Ethiopia.

The present study was undertaken to determine the occurrence, distribution and antimicrobial resistance pattern of Salmonella serovars in apparently healthy slaughtered sheep and goats in central Ethiopia. A total 1224 samples consisting of faeces, mesenteric lymph nodes, liver, spleen, and abdominal and diaphragmatic muscle samples were collected from 104 sheep and 100 goats. Salmonella was isolated from 12 of 104 (11.5%) sheep and 3 of 100 (3%) goats. Of the total 624 and 600 samples examined from sheep and goats, 18 (2.9%) and 4 (0.7%), respectively, were Salmonella positive. The 22 Salmonella isolates belonged to 9 different serovars. The common serovars isolated were S. typhimurium, followed by S. heidelberg, S. reading, S. give, and S. poona. Seven of the 22 isolates (31.8%) were multidrug-resistant to various antimicrobials.

Lung cancer health care needs assessment: patients' and informal carers' responses to a national mail questionnaire survey.

The objective of this study was to describe patients' and informal carers' perceptions of care received and services offered following a diagnosis of primary lung cancer. We prepared a prospective, national, mail questionnaire survey of 466 patients with a diagnosis of primary lung cancer and a lay carer of their choice. The setting was 24 randomly chosen hospitals throughout the UK, from a range of urban (n = 11) and rural settings (n = 13). The majority (76%/159) of responders were recipients of care from cancer units. Two hundred and nine patients (45%) with primary lung cancer and 70 (15%) lay carers completed questionnaires. The main results that we found were that key areas of unmet need were most apparent during periods away from acute service sectors, with as few as 40% of patients reporting having received as much help as they needed from community services. The greatest onus of care for patients fell to lay carers, but only 29% of patients identified their lay carers as having needs in relation to their illness. Where patients received all their diagnostic tests in one hospital they were significantly more likely to wait less time between first seeing their general practitioner (GP) and being told their diagnosis (P = 0.0001) than patients who had to attend more than one hospital during their diagnostic work-up period. Fifty per cent of patients reported experiencing some degree of breathlessness even at rest, but only 15% reported having received any advice on living with it. Less than a quarter (23%) of hospital consultants identified anxiety as a key problem for patients with lung cancer, but 66% of patients identified it as such. Hospital staff largely overlook the needs of informal carers, who derive support from a small, mainly community oriented group of professionals, but accessing help is problematic and is dependent on local resources and a need to be proactive. Our conclusions are that developments in service provision for patients with lung cancer and their informal carers need to focus on six key areas: development of strategies to encourage patients to present earlier to their GP; ongoing evaluation of rapid diagnostic clinics; development and evaluation of a lung cancer care coordinator role; evaluation of innovations in delivery of nursing care in the community; development of local guidelines to facilitate equitable access to palliative care and social services; and evaluation of supportive strategies targeted at lay carers.

The quantitative clearance of bacteria from the bloodstream of rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri).

The blood clearance of 51Cr-labelled heat-killed Salmonella pullorum was biphasic and exponential for each phase. This pattern was the same for all three concentrations of bacteria used. The initial more rapid phase lasted for approximately 15 minutes when roughly 90% of the bacteria had been cleared. The second slower phase started 25 to 30 minutes post-inoculation and lasted for approximately 25 to 30 minutes. The tissue distribution of bacteria showed that in both absolute and relative terms, the kidney was the most important organ, accounting for more than 70% uptake of the bacteria. These kinetics demonstrate that rainbow trout at 8 degrees C are able to clear their bloodstream of Salmonella very efficiently, in a fashion very similar to mammals. It is not know, however, which of the various possible clearance mechanisms dominates each phase.

Isolation of bacteriophage for Caryophanon latum.

Bacteriophage which produce either clear or turbid center plaques have been isolated for native isolates of Caryophanon latum.