Background: Typhoid and paratyphoid infections (STP) are an important differential diagnosis for Salmonella enteritidis infections (NTS). The aim of this study is to carve out clinical differences between both infections.
Patients/methods: We retrospectively reviewed all patients admitted to our hospital between 2007 and 2011 with a diagnosis of STP infection. History, clinical course and laboratory findings were compared with age-matched patients suffering from NTS.
Results/discussion: All patients with an STP-infection showed had a positive travel history (as compared to 11.1% in the NTS group, p<0.01). Salmonella were mostly isolated from blood cultures (n=7/9) in the STP group as compared to 1/16 in the NTS group, where S. enteridis was mainly isolated from faecal cultures (p<0,01). The duration and height of fever as well as the time of hospitalization were significantly longer with STP infections than with NTS infections. Eosinopenia was observed both in STP-(100%) and NTS-infections (77.8%).
Conclusion: A positive travel history is crucial to the identification of a STP infection, as well as an eosinopenia.
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