Four Sporadic Pediatric Cases of <i>Yersinia enterocolitica</i> O:8 Infection in a Rural Area of Japan

• DOI: 10.7883/yoken.jjid.2016.039
• Publication Date: 2016-05-08T18:04:11Z
• Authors: Kisei Minami; Ryu Yasuda; Runa Terakawa; Yumi Koike; Koichi Takeuchi; Tsukasa Higuchi; Ayaka Horiuchi; Noriko Kubota; Eiko Hidaka; Yoshiyuki Kawakami
• Keywords: Male; Rural Population; 0301 basic medicine; Adolescent; Yersinia Infections; 1. No poverty; O Antigens; Serogroup; 3. Good health; 03 medical and health sciences; Japan; Child, Preschool; 11. Sustainability; Cluster Analysis; Humans; Female; Child; Yersinia enterocolitica

In the spring of 2015, we experienced a cluster of 4 sporadic cases of yersiniosis in children in Nagano prefecture, a rural area of Japan. Two patients developed appendicitis-like episodes; one had acute gastroenteritis, and the other had bacteremia associated with liver abscess. The causative agent of these infections was Yersinia enterocolitica serogroup O:8. None of the patients had an underlying illness, and all have recovered completely. The patients were neither socially nor geographically related to each other. These 4 consecutive cases suggest that Y. enterocolitica O:8 has spread substantially in the middle part of Japan, and that this virulent strain might be more common than previously reported in our country.