Risk Factors Associated with Campylobacter jejuni Infections in Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles

• Published in: Journal of clinical microbiology Vol. 41; no. 12; pp. 5588 - 5592
• Main Authors: Endtz, Hubert P., van West, Hanneke, Godschalk, Peggy C. R., de Haan, Lidewij, Halabi, Yaskara, van den Braak, Nicole, Kesztyüs, Barbara I., Leyde, Ewald, Ott, Alewijn, Verkooyen, Roel, Price, Lawrence J., Woodward, David L., Rodgers, Frank G., Ang, C. Wim, van Koningsveld, Rinske, van Belkum, Alex, Gerstenbluth, Izzy
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01-12-2003
• ISSN: 0095-1137; 1098-660X
• DOI: 10.1128/JCM.41.12.5588-5592.2003

A steady increase in the incidence of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) with a seasonal preponderance, almost exclusively related to
Campylobacter jejuni
, and a rise in the incidence of laboratory-confirmed
Campylobacter
enteritis have been reported from Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. We therefore investigated possible risk factors associated with diarrhea due to epidemic
C. jejuni
. Typing by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis identified four epidemic clones which accounted for almost 60% of the infections. One hundred six cases were included in a case-control study. Infections with epidemic clones were more frequently observed in specific districts in Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao. One of these clones caused infections during the rainy season only and was associated with the presence of a deep well around the house. Two out of three GBS-related
C. jejuni
isolates belonged to an epidemic clone. The observations presented point toward water as a possible source of
Campylobacter
infections.