Prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in diarrhoea samples from patients in New South Wales, Australia

Campylobacteriosis is a leading cause of bacterial foodborne disease in many industrialized countries including Australia. New South Wales (NSW) is the most populous state in Australia yet the lack of any Campylobacter species surveillance programs has led to a knowledge gap in the importance of these pathogens as causes of diarrhoea. The data collected in this study demonstrated a need for such programs. In this study, 400 human clinical fecal samples were collected from two NSW locations, Western Sydney and Wagga Wagga, and tested for the presence of Campylobacter spp. Patients were clustered by location, age and gender to assess Campylobacter spp. prevalence within these groups between the two regions. The frequency of Campylobacter spp. was higher in males compared to females in the age groups 0-4 and 5-14 years; 6.4% and 1.0%, and 8.2% and none, respectively (P < 0.05). A second peak was noted in elderly adults compared with those in younger age groups. Based on the findings of the quantitative PCR analysis it was estimated that the age-adjusted prevalence of Campylobacter spp. associated diarrhoea was 159 cases per 100,000 persons.