2002 Reportable Communicable Disease Summary

Salmonella is bacterial disease commonly manifested by an acute and sudden onset of headache, abdominal pain, diarrhea and nausea within 12 hours to 5 days after infection. In cases of enterocolitis, fecal excretion usually persists for several days or weeks beyond the acute phase of illness; administration of antibiotics may not decrease the duration of excretion of organisms.


The majority of human infections are through the ingestion of fecally contaminated food or water, or, less often, during food handling by an ill person or a carrier. Undercooked and raw products such as egg, milk meat and poultry have been implicated as a common source of human salmonellosis. A wide range of domestic and wild animals are carriers of Salmonella, including poultry, swine, cattle, rodents and pets such as iguanas, tortoises, turtles, terrapins, chicks, dogs and cats. Though rare, person-to-person spread can occur in humans ? via patients, convalescent carriers and, especially, mild and unrecognized cases. The incidence rate of infection is highest in infants and young children. Salmonella gastroenteritis may occur in small outbreaks in the general population.


Of approximately 2,500 known serotypes, only about 200 are detected in the US in any given year. In Oregon , S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis are the two most commonly reported.