An Arizona serotype isolated from a case of gastro-enteritis in Britain

Abstract

SUMMARYTwo isolations of Arizona from humans were made in Sheffield in 1966. The first was from a 3-year-old girl with a history of gastro-enteritis; the second was from her 5-year-old brother who was a symptomless excretor. Infection was traced to pet terrapins recently purchased from a local pet shop. The relative epidemiological significance of Arizona infection and the potential hazard of pet terrapins has been reviewed.We wish to thank Dr V. G. S. Damms for his help and co-operation and for allowing us to publish details of his patients, Dr J. G. Wallace for his work on the preliminary identification of the organism, and Dr Joan Taylor and Dr E. H. Gillespie for their helpful advice and criticism.

Salmonellaexcretion by pet terrapins

“…All the creatures that we examined were red-eared turtles (PseudeMys scripta elegans) but this is not the only species which has been shown to be infected (Plows et al 1968;Williams & Helsdon, 1965). The related land turtle, the tortoise, has been shown on many occasions in this and many other countries to carry salmonellas (Boycott et al.…”

“…Seventeen years after the original observation the first case of human salmonellosis with a terrapin as source was reported (Hersey & Mason, 1963) and since then over fifty American cases which were epidemiologically associated with terrapins have been described (Kaufmann & Morrison, 1966). In the United Kingdom Plows, Fretwell & Parry (1968) have very recently recorded the infection of a patient with an Arizona species which came from an infected terrapin. They also isolated several salmonellas from one of the patient's terrapins, and refer to a case of salmonellosis in Liverpool where the most likely source was again a terrapin.…”

Salmonella arizonaein the United Kingdom from 1966 to 1990

“…The first recorded human infection in the UK with S. arizonae was in 1966. This was due to serotype Sa61 :C:Z35 isolated from a girl of 3 years who had gastroenteritis [15].…”

“…Sa 61: c: Z35 was isolated in 1966 from two children and the terrapin tank water in their home. The index case, one of the children aged 3 years, had the habit of putting terrapins in her mouth [15].…”

Isolations of subgenus III salmonellas (arizonas) in Cardiff, 1959–1971

“…This was the first isolation of a subgenus III salmonella from man in the United Kingdom. The source of infection was traced to a terrapin imported from Florida, U.S.A. (Plows, Fretwell & Parry, 1968). It is interesting that terrapins were on sale in the gallery of the Cardiff meat market.…”