Open AccessThe persistence of Shigella flexneri in the United States: increasing role of adult males.
Author(s) -
Robert V. Tauxe,
Rana McDonald,
Nancy Hargrett-Bean,
P A Blake
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.78.11.1432
Subject(s) - shigella flexneri , persistence (discontinuity) , demography , shigella , isolation (microbiology) , transmission (telecommunications) , medicine , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteria , escherichia coli , salmonella , biochemistry , genetics , geotechnical engineering , electrical engineering , sociology , engineering , gene
The annual reported isolation rate of Shigella flexneri decreased from 1964 to 1973, but has remained constant since then at 1 per 100,000. Between 1975 and 1985, the median age of males from whom S. flexneri was isolated rose from 5 to 26 years. During this time, the isolation rate of S. flexneri rose more than five-fold among men, did not change in adult women, and decreased in children. By 1985, 23 per cent of reported S. flexneri isolates came from men aged 20-49. Increased male homosexual transmission of S. flexneri is a possible explanation for these findings.