Encyclopedia of Salmonella: Volume V (Infections, Control and Concerns)

Salmonella is described as a bacterium that occurs primarily in the gut, especially a serotype causing food poisoning. There are more than 2,500 serotypes of salmonella in existence, but only a few lead to food borne illnesses. Salmonella is the second major bacterial cause of food-borne gastroenteritis worldwide. Most people suffering from salmonella infections do not require treatment since they are only affected by temporary gastroenteritis but when the infection gets invasive and starts spreading at a fast rate, antimicrobial treatment becomes mandatory. Symptoms occur generally 8 to 72 hours and last 3 to 5 days after ingestion of the pathogen. Salmonellosis infections mainly affect the elderly, children and immunocompromised individuals. United States suffers a loss of around $2.4 billion due to food borne salmonella infections every year. More than 500 people die due to salmonellosis infections among a reported figure of nearly 1.4 million cases in the US every year. This book covers various topics such as ways and means for controlling salmonella in food, role of foods in salmonella infections, biofilm formation, antimicrobial drug resistance of salmonella isolates, food-borne outbreaks caused by salmonella and salmonella isolation and identification methods.