Zia Ullah, Karamat Ahmed Karamat, Shahid Ahmed Abbasi, Aamer Ikram, Shahid Rafi.
Infection with enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli 0157:H7 in children of Rawalpindi/Islamabad: Prevalence and clinical presentation.
Pak J Pathol Jan ;8(4):32-7.

Acute diarrhoea is one of the commonest problems in children in the developing countries. Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) 0157:H7 is an emerging pathogen causing diarrhoea. It produces two types of toxins called Shiga like toxins (SLT) II & I which can cause haemolytic uraemic syndrome leading to acute renal failure. A study was conducted from June 1 996 to May 1997 at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi, to find out the prevalence of EHEC serotype 0157:H7 in children under 12 years of age. A total of 300 specimens were investigated along with the same number of age matched controls. Only obvious diarrhoeal stools from admitted and out-door patients were included in the study. Samples were inoculated on conventional media. Detection of EHEC 0157:H7 was facilitated by the use of sorbitol MacConkey agar and fluoroccult Escherichia coli 0157: H7 agar. The isolates were confirmed serologically. Six 12%) stool samples were found positive for EHEC 0157:H7. All the samples were of children under four years of age. Clinical features included frequency of stools ranging from 6-10 per day. Fever was present in all the cases. No EHEC was isolated from the control group. Escherichia coli 0157:H7 is a less common cause of bloody diarrhoea in our set up. However, screening for this organism is still recommended in children with bloody diarrhoea and haemolytic uraemic syndrome.

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