Rapid Emergence of Florfenicol-Resistant Invasive Non-Typhoidal Salmonella in China: A Potential Threat to Public Health

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2019 Dec;101(6):1282-1285. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.19-0403.

Abstract

Infection caused by invasive Salmonella occurs when Salmonella bacteria, which normally cause diarrhea, enter the bloodstream and spread through the body. We report the dramatic increase in florfenicol-resistant invasive non-typhoidal Salmonella (iNTS) in China between 2007 and 2016. Of the 186 iNTS strains isolated during the study period, 34 were florfenicol resistant, most of which harbored known resistance genes. Florfenicol is exclusively used in veterinary medicine in China, but now florfenicol-resistant iNTS is found in clinical patients. This finding indicates that antimicrobial resistance produced in veterinary medicine can be transmitted to humans, which poses a severe threat to public health.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial / genetics*
  • Humans
  • Public Health
  • Salmonella / drug effects*
  • Salmonella / genetics
  • Salmonella Infections
  • Thiamphenicol / analogs & derivatives*
  • Thiamphenicol / pharmacology

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • florfenicol
  • Thiamphenicol