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Etiologic agents of acute diarrhea in sentinel surveillance sites in Vientiane Capital, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, 2012–2015

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Abstract

This study aims to identify the pathogens of diarrhea in Vientiane Capital, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). The data of 2482 patients who visited eight health facilities due to diarrhea in 2012–2015 were retrospectively reviewed. Stool or rectal swabs collected from all patients were tested for bacteria. Children who were under 5 years old were additionally tested for rotavirus. Of 2482 cases, 1566 cases were under 5 years old, and at least one enteropathogen was detected in 475 cases (19.1%). Salmonella species was the most commonly detected bacterial pathogen. Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) and Salmonella species was the major pathogen in the dry season and the wet season, respectively. Eighty-seven patients tested positive for multiple bacteria. Rotavirus was detected in 291 children under 5 years old (32.4%), mostly from October to April. The major bacteria of coinfection with rotavirus were EPEC followed by Salmonella species. Salmonella species was the predominant bacterial pathogen of diarrhea of all ages, and rotavirus was the predominant pathogen among children under 5 years old. Further studies examining other types of pathogens for diarrhea and the introduction of a rotavirus vaccine for children are needed in Lao PDR.

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Acknowledgments

The authors deeply appreciate the laboratory officers of National Center for Laboratory and Epidemiology (NCLE) as well as the Chief and Vice Chief of the bacteriology unit. The authors would like to thank doctors and nurses of all eight diarrheal sentinel surveillance sites who collected the data and sent stool specimens to NCLE.

Funding

This study was financially supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) which is gratefully acknowledged. The funder had no role in the design, collection of samples, analysis, interpretation or writing of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Healthcare Administration, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, 466-8550, Japan

    Souphatsone Houattongkham, Eiko Yamamoto, Souphalak Inthaphatha, Tetsuyoshi Kariya, Yu Mon Saw & Nobuyuki Hamajima

  2. Epidemiology Section, Bacteriology Unit, National Center for Laboratory and Epidemiology, Km 3 Thadeau Road, Ban Thaphalarnxay, Sisathanack district, Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR

    Souphatsone Houattongkham & Onechanh Keosavanh

  3. Laboratory Section, Bacteriology Unit, National Center for Laboratory and Epidemiology, Km 3 Thadeau Road, Ban Thaphalarnxay, Sisathanack district, Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR

    Noikaseumsy Sithivong, Arounnapha Vongduangchanh & Onechanh Keosavanh

Authors
  1. Souphatsone Houattongkham
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  2. Eiko Yamamoto
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  3. Noikaseumsy Sithivong
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  4. Souphalak Inthaphatha
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  5. Tetsuyoshi Kariya
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  7. Arounnapha Vongduangchanh
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  8. Onechanh Keosavanh
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  9. Nobuyuki Hamajima
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Contributions

Souphatsone Houattongkham, Eiko Yamamoto, and Onechanh Keosavanh designed the study. Souphatsone Houattongkham, Noikaseumsy Sithivong, and Arounnapha Vongduangchanh collected the data. Ouphatsone Houattongkham, Eiko Yamamoto, and Souphalak Inthapatha carried out the analysis. Yu Mon Saw, Tetsuyoshi Kariya, and Nobuyuki Hamajima provided the epidemiological advice. Souphatsone Houattongkham wrote the first draft, and Eiko Yamamoto and Nobuyuki Hamajima revised the manuscript. All authors reviewed the manuscript and approved the final version of manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eiko Yamamoto.

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Houattongkham, S., Yamamoto, E., Sithivong, N. et al. Etiologic agents of acute diarrhea in sentinel surveillance sites in Vientiane Capital, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, 2012–2015. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 39, 1115–1122 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-020-03827-6

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