Background: The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiologic profile of non-typhoid salmonellosis at a general hospital in the metropolitan area of Madrid.
Methods: A descriptive and retrospective study of non-typhoid salmonellosis diagnosed at Microbiology Department of Fundación Jiménez Díaz from May 1980 to December 1994 was done.
Results: Non-typhoid Salmonella (NTS) was identified in 1796 specimens of 1463 patients, 520 (35.5%) were under 15 years and 943 (64.5%) were over 14 years. The infection was intestinal in 1288 (88%) cases, bacteremic in 129 (8.8%) and focal in 46 (3.1%). The extraintestinal infection was most frequent in patients over 14 years (15.5% versus 5.6%; p < 0.001). From 1987, 34 adults patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection developed salmonellosis. The infection was due to Salmonella serogroup B (29.4%) and the extraintestinal manifestations (58.8%) were most frequent in HIV-infected patients than in the control-group (p = 0.004 and p < 0.001, respectively). Salmonella serogroup D was identified in 1041 (71.2%) episodes, and serogroup B in 259 (17.7%). Salmonella serogroup B and C were more resistant to one or more antibiotics than Salmonella serogroup D (p = 0.001). Resistance of NTS (principally Salmonella serogroup B) for one or more antibiotics (particularly ampicillin and chloramphenicol) increased significantly during the period of study (p < 0.001).
Conclusions: The HIV-infected patients had a predisposition to develop extraintestinal Salmonella infections. Resistance of NTS for antibiotics, especially Salmonella serogroup B, has significantly increased during the last years.