The February issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention includes a report by the Michigan Department of Health. The report shows the findings from surveillance of shiga toxin-producing E. coli, including E. coli O157:H7, between 2001 and 2005.
A surveillance system used different detection methods to estimate prevalence of Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli during 2003–2005 and 2001–2002. More non-O157 serotypes were detected by enzyme immunoassay than by evaluation of non–sorbitol-fermenting E. coli isolates. We therefore recommend use of enzyme immunoassay and culture-based methods.
Infection with Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a frequent cause of gastrointestinal disease, particularly among children and elderly persons.