CAMPYLOBACTERIOSIS

MICROBIOLOGY: - Campylobacters are motile, curved gram-negative rods that are a common bacterial cause of gastroenteritis in the United States. Most cases are caused by C. jejuni.

EPIDEMIOLOGY: - Campylobacters are common commensals in the GI tract of many food animals and household pets. In the United States, ingestion of contaminated poultry accounts for 30–70% of cases. Transmission to humans occurs via contact with or ingestion of raw or undercooked food products or direct contact with infected animals.

CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS: -

An incubation period of 2–4 days (range, 1–7 days) is followed by a prodrome of fever, headache, myalgia, and/or malaise. Within the next 12–48 h, diarrhea (with stools containing blood, mucus, and leukocytes), cramping abdominal pain, and fever develop.

• Most cases are self-limited, but illness persists for >1 week in 10–20% of patients and may be confused with inflammatory bowel disease.
• Species other than C. jejuni (e.g., C. fetus) can cause a similar illness or prolonged relapsing systemic disease without a primary focus in immunocompromised pts.

– The course may be fulminant, with bacterial seeding of many organs, particularly vascular sites.

– Fetal death can result from infection in a pregnant patient.

• Three patterns of extraintestinal infection have been noted:

(1) transient bacteremia in a normal host with enteritis (benign course, no specific treatment needed);

(2) sustained bacteremia or focal infection in a normal host with enteritis (benign course, no specific treatment needed) and

(3) sustained bacteremia or focal infection in a compromised host.

COMPLICATIONS: -

• Complications include reactive arthritis (particularly in persons with the HLA-B27 phenotype) and Guillain-Barré syndrome (in which campylobacters are associated with 20–40% of cases).

DIAGNOSIS: - The diagnosis is confirmed by cultures of stool, blood, or other specimens on special media and/or with selective techniques.

HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE FOR CAMPYLOBACTERIOSIS

The medicines that can be thought of use are: -

• Camphor
• Veratrum album
• Cuprum met
• Merc iod Flavus
• Hepar sulph