Phenotypic markers associated with gastrointestinal Aeromonas hydrophila isolates from symptomatic children.

Aeromonas hydrophila gastroenteritis was detected in 12 pediatric patients during a 5-month period. Chief complaints included bloody diarrhea, fever, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Severe symptoms in two patients necessitated hospitalization and supportive care. Phenotypic characteristics associated with enterotoxigenicity of A. hydrophila strains demonstrated that all 12 isolates were cytotoxic to HeLa cells and most were lysine decarboxylase positive (75%). A correlation existed between the presence of the five virulence-associated markers of two isolates of A. hydrophila and the severity of disease. Although the length and symptoms of gastroenteritis varied among all 12 patients, most had self-limiting diarrhea. The frequent occurrence of A. hydrophila gastroenteritis in pediatric patients warrants a greater appreciation of this agent as a significant cause of diarrhea, especially in summer.