Salmonella Kentucky has developed resistance to antibiotic Ciprofloxacin

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A strain of Salmonella resistant to the most powerful antibiotics has been found in the UK, France and Denmark. This particular strain has a high level of resistance to ciprofloxacin, a common treatment for severe salmonella infections.

The strain, known as Salmonella Kentucky, has developed resistance to the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin, often used for treating severe Salmonella cases.

French researchers started monitoring the strain after noticing a handful of cases in travelers returning from Egypt, Kenya and Tanzania.

National Salmonella surveillance systems from France, England and Wales, Denmark, and the United States identified the recent emergence of multidrug-resistant isolates of Salmonella enterica serotype Kentucky displaying high-level resistance to ciprofloxacin.

A total of 489 human cases were identified during the period from 2002 (3 cases) to 2008 (174 cases). These isolates belonged to a single clone defined by the multilocus sequence type ST198, the XbaI-pulsed-field gel electrophoresis cluster X1, and the presence of the Salmonella genomic island 1 variant SGI1-K. This clone was probably selected in 3 steps in Egypt during the 1990s and the early 2000s and has now spread to several countries in Africa and, more recently, in the Middle East.

Poultry has been identified as a potential major vehicle for infection by this clone. Continued surveillance and appropriate control measures should be implemented by national and international authorities to limit the spread of this strain.

People should follow some basic food safety rules:

– wash hands properly and keep them clean,
– cook food thoroughly,
– chill foods properly and
– avoid cross-contamination

Source: The Journal of Infectious Diseases, UK


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