• Farid H Abu-Elamreen, Abdalla A Abed, and Fadel A Sharif.
• Department of Medical Microbiology, Central Laboratory and Blood Bank, AlShifa Hospital, Palestinian Ministry of Health, Gaza, Palestine. Farid1212@yahoo.com
• Med Princ Pract. 2008 Jan 1; 17 (4): 296-301.

ObjectivesTo determine the etiology of acute diarrhea in Palestinian children under 5 years of age and to improve knowledge of the etiology of gastrointestinal pathogens using traditional and molecular diagnostic techniques.Materials And MethodsVarious common enteropathogens (viral, bacterial and parasites) associated with diarrhea were investigated by conventional and molecular techniques (PCR) in 150 children less than 5 years of age admitted to the Central Pediatric Hospital, Gaza Strip, Palestine.ResultsThe occurrence of enteropathogens identified was as follows: rotavirus 42/150 (28%), Entamoeba histolytica/dispar 23/150 (15%), Shigella spp. 9/150 (6%), Campylobacter coli/jejuni and Escherichia coli O157:H7 7/150 (5%) each, Salmonella spp. 3/150 (2%), Giardia intestinalis 1/150 (1%), and Strongyloides stercoralis 1/150 (1%) of the samples. Shigella and Salmonella isolates were tested for their susceptibility to common antimicrobial agents and most of the isolates were resistant to ampicillin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that rotavirus, E. coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter, which are not routinely screened for in Gaza Strip, were significant enteropathogens. The results highlight the value of using a combination of traditional and PCR techniques in the diagnosis of enteropathogens related to gastroenteritis.(c) 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel

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