Publication at Second Faculty of Medicine |
2016
Abstract
Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are an important cause of diarrhea and the major cause of typical form of hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS) worldwide. Manifestation of STEC infection can be diverse, from uncomplicated diarrhea through hemorrhagic colitis, to a serious systemic disease - HUS, that is the most common cause of acute kidney injury, especially in young children.
Due to possible progression of diarrhea to life-threatening illness, all physicians treating patients with diarrhea should get familiar with the epidemiology, pathogenesis and clinical symptomes of infection caused by the organism. This article describes the history, epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical aspects, and diagnostic methods of STEC infections.