Recovery and Its Evaluation of Shigella bacilli or Salmonella from Healthy Food Handlers in Tokyo (1961-1997)

Abstract

Since 1961, recovery of Shigella bachilli from healthy food handlers in Tokyo has been carrying out, and detection of Salmonella carriers has also been adding from 1980. Recovery rate of Shigella has decreased from 0.28% (589 cases) in 1961 to 0.01% (9 cases) in 1969, and 7 cases between 1971 and 1975 and only 3 carriers since 1976 have been detected. On the other hand, Salmonella has been detected from about 9, 000 cases (0.07%) during 18 years. The isolates were typed into 150 serovars, in which the most frequent one was S. Enteritidis, following S. Litchfield, S. Thompson, S. Hadar, S. Typhimurium, S. Infantis, S. Tennessee, S. Montevideo, S. Agona and S. Braenderup. These serovars except S. Agona caused in 90% of 1, 650 Salmonella food poisoning outbreaks which had occurred between 1980 and 1996. Recovery of S. Enteritidis from healthy subjects increased year by year since 1989, and this tendency was well consistent with the increase of food poisoning outbreak caused by this serovar. These results indicate that the recovery of carrier with enteropathogen from food handlars is significant as preventive measures or food hygiene.