Clinical Laboratory Practices for the Isolation and Identification of Campylobacter in Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) Sites: Baseline Information for Understanding Changes in Surveillance Data

• Published in: Clinical infectious diseases 2012-06, Vol.54 (suppl_5), p.S440-S445
• Main Authors: Hurd, Sharon, Patrick, Mary, Hatch, Julie, Clogher, Paula, Wymore, Katie, Cronquist, Alicia B., Segler, Suzanne, Robinson, Trisha, Hanna, Samir, Smith, Glenda, Fitzgerald, Collette
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bacterial infections; Bacteriological Techniques; Best practices; Campylobacter; Campylobacter - isolation & purification; Campylobacter infections; Campylobacter Infections - diagnosis; Campylobacter Infections - epidemiology; Campylobacter Infections - microbiology; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.); Diagnostic tests; Disease Outbreaks; Emerging diseases; Epidemiology; Food contamination & poisoning; Food-borne diseases; Foodborne Diseases - diagnosis; Foodborne Diseases - epidemiology; Foodborne Diseases - microbiology; Gram-negative bacteria; Guidelines; Humans; Incidence; Infection; Infections; Labor force surveys; Laboratories; Laboratory testing; Medical practice; Monitoring systems; Polls & surveys; Population Surveillance; Preventive medicine; Public health; Specimens; Temperature; United States - epidemiology
• ISSN: 1058-4838; 1537-6591
• DOI: 10.1093/cid/cis245

Background. Campylobacter is a leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States. Understanding laboratory practices is essential to interpreting incidence and trends in reported campylobacteriosis over time and provides a baseline for evaluating the increasing use of culture-independent diagnostic methods for Campylobacter infection. Methods. The Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) conducts surveillance for laboratory-confirmed Campylobacter infections. In 2005, FoodNet conducted a survey of clinical laboratories to describe routine practices used for isolation and identification of Campylobacter. A profile was assigned to laboratories based on complete responses to key survey questions that could impact the recovery and isolation of Campylobacter from stool specimens. Results. Of 411 laboratories testing on-site for Campylobacter, 97% used only culture methods. Among those responding to the individual questions, nearly all used transport medium (97%) and incubated at 42°C (94%); however, most deviated from existing guidelines in other areas: 68% held specimens in transport medium at room temperature before plating, 51% used Campy blood agar plate medium, 52% read plates at