National Agricultural Biosecurity Center

Synopsis of Salmonella

Salmonellosis is an infection caused by the bacterium Salmonella enterica, which has over 2,000 serotypes, such as S. dublin (cattle), S. pullorum (chickens), S. enteritidis (all animals and birds), and S. typhimurium (humans and non-human primates). Salmonella is extremely common and found worldwide. Salmonella bacteria can be found in the gastrointestinal tracts of many species of animals, birds, reptiles, and humans. It can also be found in the environment due to fecal contamination. The primary route of entry is ingestion. Consumption of improperly handled/cooked of poultry, meat, eggs, and other foodstuffs is the primary source of infection among humans. According to the CDC, there is an estimated 1.4 million cases per year, with about 16,000 resulting in hospitalization and about 600 resulting in death as a result of improper handling and cooking of foodstuffs.

• Transmission in humans:
  • Contaminated food or water - most commonly, contaminated poultry or eggs (S. enteritidis)
  • Person-to-person (S. typhimurium)

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Clinical Signs and Symptoms

Animals:

• Sheep, goats, and poultry usually show no signs of infection
• Clinical signs and symptoms:
  • Fever
  • Anorexia
  • Lethargy
  • Diarrhea
  • Abdominal pain

Humans:

• Incubation: 6 to 72 hours
• Clinical signs and symptoms:
  • Diarrhea
  • Fever
  • Abdominal cramps
  • Headache
  • Loss of appetite
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Dehydration may also occur, especially in children
• Click here for more human-related information on anthrax posted on the UAB Website for Bioterrorism and Emerging Infectious Education.

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Diagnosis and Treatment

Diagnostic Samples:

• In animals:
  • Feces
  • Post-mortem tissues
  • Foods of animal origin
• In humans:
  • Feces
  • Suspected foods

Differential Diagnosis:

• In animals, the differential diagnoses include blackleg, botulism, toxicosis, lightning strike, and peracute babesiosis.
• In humans, the differential diagnoses include other viral, bacterial, or fungal infections, chest-wall edema, hemorrhagic pleural effusions, and hemorrhagic meningitis.

Clinical Diagnosis:

• In herbivores, anthrax should be considered when sudden death occurs in livestock and unclotted blood from the nose, mouth, anus, or vulva is present. Localized edema of the neck area is suggestive of anthrax in swine and carnivores.
• In humans, consider a presumptive diagnosis based on signs and symptoms alone in the setting of a known or suspected outbreak.

Laboratory Tests:

• In animals and humans:
  • Bacterial isolation using serological techniques

Treatment:

• In animals:
  • Antibiotics and sulfonamides
  • Vaccines:
    • Live vaccine prepared from a rough strain of S. dublin gives good protection in calves against both S. dublin and S. typhimurium.
• In humans:
  • Supportive care
  • Antibiotics
    • Trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole
    • Ampicillin
    • Ciprofloxaicin

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Economic Consequences and Disease Eradication

Economic Consequences:

• Costs associated with eradication efforts and treatment.
• Increased costs passed on to consumers
• Medical costs associated with treatment

Disease Eradication:

• Education:
  • Cook poultry, meats, eggs, and other foods thoroughly
  • Use proper handling techniques when preparing foods
  • Properly refrigerate poultry, meat, eggs, and other foods containing these raw items
  • Do not drink untreated water, such as streams, lakes, etc.
  • Do not drink or consume unpasteurized dairy products
  • Avoidance of cross-contamination when preparing food
  • Wash hands before and after handling food
  • Wash hands after handling diapers, handling pets, or cleaning animal facilities
• Industry:
  • Good sanitation and management practices
  • Irradiation of meat and other foods
  • Maintenance of closed herds and flocks
  • Avoid mixing animals from different sources
  • Sterilize ingredients of animal feed
  • Provide clean, sterile drinking water for grazing livestock
  • Prevent access of wild animals, birds, and rodents
  • Completely destock animals and thoroughly clean and disinfect housing areas between batches
  • Monitor poultry breeding stock and remove excreters
  • Disinfect hatching eggs and fumigate incubators
• Legislation:
  • Notifiable disease
• Viability:
  • Salmonella bacteria survive well in wet environments shielded from sunlight.
  • Survive well between pH 4 to 8 and temperature between 8∞C and 45∞C
  • Since salmonella are facultative anaerobic bacteria, they survive well under low oxygen tension, such as that found in manure slurry pits
  • Salmonella is destroyed by the drying effects of wind, by the bactericidal effect of UV irradiation from the sun, and by disinfectant agents, such as chlorine solutions, iodines, quarternary ammoniums, and phenolics

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Outbreaks

Click on the following hyperlink for the most recent outbreak information located at the Office International des Epizooties Website. http://www.oie.int/eng/info/hebdo/A_DSUM.htm.

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Sources and Related Articles

Sources:

1. WHO. October 2001. Fact sheet: Anthrax. Fact sheet N∞264 Available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs264/en/print.html.
2. CDC. March 21 ,2005. Anthrax. Available at http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/anthrax/index.asp.
3. USDA, APHIS. November 2001. Anthrax: Clinical Signs and Diagnosis. Available at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/pubs/fsheet_faq_notice/fs_ahanthrax.html.
4. UAB: Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections Education. Anthrax Summary. Available at http://bioterrorism.uab.edu/CategoryA/Anthrax/summary.asp.
5. CIDRAP. Anthrax: Current, comprehensive information on pathogenesis, microbiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prophylaxis. Available at www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/bt/anthrax/index.html.

Related Articles:

6. Anonymous, 2001. Beyond Anthrax: Extremism and the Bioterrorism Threat. Published by the Anti-Defamation League. Available at http://www.adl.org/learn/Anthrax/beyond_anthrax.pdf.
7. Anonymous. August 17, 2001. Human Anthrax Associated with an Epizootic Among Livestock - North Dakota, 2000. MMWR. 50(32). Available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5032.pdf.
8. Anonymous. October 19, 2001. Update: Investigation of Anthrax Associated with Intentional Exposure and Interim Public Health Guidelines, October 2001. Morbidity and MMWR. 50(41). Available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5041.pdf.
9. Anonymous. November 2, 2001. Update: Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax. MMWR. 50(43):941-948. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5043.pdf.
10. Anonymous. February 2005. Biosecurity Guideline for the Farmer or Producer. Available at http://www.agrosecurity.uga.edu/annexes/Annex03_Procedures.pdf.
11. Campbell K. November 7, 2001. Anthrax in Santa Clara Cattle adds to Jitters. Ag Alert. California Farm Bureau Federation. Available at http://www.cfbf.com/agalert/2001/aa-110701c.htm.
12. Bales ME, Dannenberg AL, Brachman PS, Kaufman AF, Klatsky PC, and Ashford DA. 2001. Epidemiologic Response to Anthrax Outbreaks: Field Investigations, 1950-2001. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 8(10):1163-1174. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol8no10/pdf/020223.pdf.
13. Hatfield L. August 4, 2005. Bad Year for Anthrax Outbreaks in US Livestock. CIDRAP News. Available at http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/bt/anthrax/news/aug042005anthrax.html.
14. Hugh-Jones ME and de Vos V. 2002. Anthrax and wildlife. Office International des Epizooties. Rev Sci Tech. 21(2):359-383. Available at http://www.oie.int/eng/publicat/rt/2102/HUGH-JONES.pdf.
15. Inglesby TV, Henderson DA, Bartlett JG, Ascher MS, Eitzen E, et. al., 1999. Anthrax as a Biological Weapon: Medical and Public Health Management. iJAMA. 1999 281:1735-1745. http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/281/18/1735.
16. Kirk J and Hamlen H. October 2000. Anthrax: What Livestock Producers Should Know. Published in California Cattlemen, December 2000. Available at http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ahfss/ah/pdfs/Anthrax_hh_article.pdf.
17. Parker R, Mathis C, Looper M, and Sawyer J. April 2002. Anthrax and Livestock: Guide B-120. New Mexico State University. Cooperative Extension Service. College of Agriculture and Home Economics. Available at http://www.cahe.nmsu.edu/pubs/_b/B-120.pdf.
18. Preslar D. August 2001. Outbreak - Anthrax. Federation of American Scientist. <iAheadIliad. Available at http://fas.org/ahead/news/000825.htm.
19. Click on the following hyperlink for the most recent outbreak information located at the Office International des Epizooties Website. http://www.oie.int/eng/info/hebdo/A_DSUM.htm.

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