Pathogens of bacterial food poisoning in Longgang district in Shenzhen municipality,2003 - 2010

Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics of bacterial food poisoning and the category of pathogens in Longgang from 2003 to 2010 and provide scientific evidence for the detection and prevention of bacterial food poisoning. Methods The samples collected from bacterial food poisoning events in Longgang during this period were tested according to the criteria of food microbiological examination GB/T 4789, WS/T 9-1996 and WS 271 - 2007, the Results were analyzed statistically with SPSS 13.0 software. Results Ninety bacterial food poisoning outbreaks occurred in Longgang during this period. The pathogens detected mainly included Vibrio parahaemolyticus (33.3%), Escherichia coli (10.0%), Salmonella (5.6%) and Bacillus proteus (5.6%). The outbreaks mainly occurred during summer-autumn, accounting for 71.1% (64/90), and most outbreaks were caused by eating the food from canteen, accounting for 75.6% (68/90). The detection rate of pathogen in stool samples was highest (60.5%, 23/38). Conclusion The predominant pathogen of bacterial food poisoning was Vibrio parahaemolyticus in Longgang. It is essential to understand the incidence pattern of bacterial food poisoning and strengthen the food hygiene supervision and health education for the effective prevention and control of food borne diseases.