Oscar Gaunya
Ministry of Health, Kenya
Title: Laboratory confirmed salmonella typhi cases among patients attending busia county hospitals between the year 2015-2022
Biography
Biography: Oscar Gaunya
Abstract
Salmonella infection (salmonellosis) is a common bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract. Salmonella bacteria typically live in animal and human intestines and are shed through stool (faeces). Humans become infected most frequently through contaminated water or food. (Pontier-Bres et al., 2012)Salmonella infections are diarrheal infections caused by the bacteria salmonella. Symptoms of a salmonella infection may include diarrhoea, fever, abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection chills, headache, nausea, or vomiting.(Pontier-Bres et al., 2012).The definitive diagnosis of enteric fever relies on the isolation of Salmonella enterica from normally sterile clinical samples, usually blood and Stool. Salmonella Antigen Test detects bacterial Antigen whereas Culture identifies Salmonella bacterial growth as well as provides isolates for antimicrobial susceptibility testing, epidemiologic typing, and molecular characterization.(A.Gordon, 2015)
Busia County is located in Western Kenya within the Lake Victoria Basin, bordering the Republic of Uganda to the West and North, Bungoma County to the North East, Kakamega County to the East and Siaya County to the South. The County is divided into seven Sub-Counties namely: - Bunyala, Butula, Matayos, Nambale, Samia, Teso North and Teso South. The county covers a geographical area of 1697 square kilometres and has altitude varying from 1130 to 1375m above sea level. Agriculture, fishing and trade are the main economic activities in Busia County. Being the entry points between Kenya and Uganda, Busia and Malaba Towns are thriving trade towns where livestock, agricultural products and manufactured goods are traded. Busia County has an estimated population of 922,352 which is 1.9% of the National population. The annual population growth rate is 2.54% and Teso South Sub-County has the highest population of 173,453 people with Budalang’i having the lowest of 73,853.(KNBS, 2019). To determine the distribution and the burden of Laboratory Confirmed Salmonella cases in Busia County. This was achieved by obtaining Laboratory surveillance data for Salmonella typhi cases from Laboratory registers in all the 7 Sub-County hospital Laboratories between the year 2015-2022.