E. Delarocque-astagneau et al., Risk factors for the occurrence of sporadic Salmonella enterica serotype typhimurium infections in children in France: A national case-control study, CLIN INF D, 31(2), 2000, pp. 488-492
To determine risk factors for the occurrence of sporadic Salmonella typhimu
rium infections among children in France, we conducted a matched case-contr
ol study, Cases were identified between 15 June and 30 September 1996. We i
nterviewed 101 pairs of case patients and control subjects, matched for age
and place of residence. The risk of illness was greater for children who a
te undercooked ground beef than for those who did not (odds ratio [OR], 5.0
; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.9-13.1). Case patients were more likely t
han control subjects to have taken antibiotics during the month before onse
t of disease (OR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.0-4.9). Case patients <5 years of age were
more likely to have been in contact with a household member with diarrhea
3-10 days before onset(P =.05). Consumption of undercooked ground beef is a
risk factor for the sporadic occurrence of S. typhimurium infection among
children, and antibiotics may facilitate the occurrence of illness. The pos
sibility of person-to-person transmission among young children needs to be
considered.