Campylobacter jejuni is most frequently associated with gastrointestinal disease. It is recognized as a leading cause of acute bacterial gastroenteritis and can lead to serious pathological sequelae.
Members of the genus Campylobacter are gram negative curved rods that range in size from 0.2 to 0,8 um in width and 0.5 to 5 um in length.
Campylobacter jejuni affects approximately 1% of the US population per year. The strongest risk factor for acquisition of Campylobacter jejuni infection is ingestion of contaminated chicken and eggs.
The first reported isolation of Campylobacter jejuni from diarrheal stools of humans was in 1972, with researchers using a filtration technique designed for veterinary diagnostics.
By the late 1970s, Campylobacter enteritis was recognized as an emerging food-borne disease.
Subsequent surveys confirmed the high prevalence of Campylobacter jejuni in the feces of patients and on the carcasses of broilers and turkeys.
Campylobacter infections in humans are considered to be mainly food-borne in which foods of animal origin play an important role.
Epidemiological studies have revealed a significant association between Campylobacter infection in humans and the handling and consumption of raw or undercooked poultry.
Symptoms of Campylobacter infections vary from profuse watery diarrhea (cholera like) to bloody diarrhea containing mucus and white blood cells – dysentery like.
Campylobacter jejuni
