Bacterial aetiology and antimicrobial resistance pattern in culture positive enteric fever in a private hospital in Sri Lanka

There is a paucity of information on enteric fever in Sri Lanka. This laboratory-based study aimed to identify the causative agent and demographic profile of patients with blood culture confirmed enteric fever at a private hospital in Colombo between February 2011 and November 2012. There were 100 isolates, S. Paratyphi A (n=92) and S. Typhi (n=8). Eighty-three patients were below 40 years. Antimicrobial resistance was seen to ciprofloxacin and azithromycin. If the emergence of S. Paratyphi A as an important cause of enteric fever is confirmed by further studies, the development of a bivalent vaccine effective against both typhoid and paratyphoid fever will be required for prevention of enteric fever.