Saturday, November 26, 2011

Pea soup stool

The motile bacterium Salmonella typhi, which is known to infect only humans, is spread by ingestion of food, drink or other material contaminated by this organism. Inadequate sanitation and hygiene cause human feces contaminated with this bacterium to end up in food, drink and other material which is then ingested. About 2 weeks after infection with Salmonella typhi, most people suffering from typhoid develop a yellow-green foul liquid stool that resembles pea soup in appearance – pea soup stool.
Good sanitation and hygiene as well as antibiotic treatment for typhoid and vaccination are important measures to curb this multisystem disease.
Reference:
Brusch JL, Garvey T, Corales R, Schmitt SK. Typhoid Fever Clinical Presentation. Medscape reference. Accessed 26-11-2011. Available http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/231135-clinical.

Electron microscope image of Salmonella typhimurium invading human cells

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