Campylobacter diarrhea in children in South Asia: A systematic review

Abstract

Background: Campylobacter spp. are one of the commonest causes of diarrhea in children under five and in resource poor settings also lead to malabsorption and stunting. The purpose of this systematic review was to understand the burden of Campylobacter spp. associated diarrhea among children in the South Asian countries.

Methods: This systematic review followed the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis) guidelines. Databases were searched with defined keywords for publications from the years 1998-2018. Data on proportion of positive samples was extracted to compare the rates of Campylobacter infection among children (under the age of 19) from different study populations.

Results: Of the 359 publications screened, 27 eligible articles were included in this systematic review and categorized based on study design. In 8 case-control studies, Campylobacter spp. was detected more frequently among diarrheal cases (range, 3.2-17.4%) than non-diarrheal cases (0-13%). Although there were variations in the study population, overall, children under the age of two years experienced Campylobacter diarrhea more often than older children. Most studies reported stool culture as the method used to detect Campylobacter spp. however retesting using PCR-based methods significantly increased detection rates. Limited data were available on Campylobacter species. In 4 studies that provided species data, C. jejuni (3.2-11.2%) was shown to be the most common species, followed by C. coli.

Conclusion: In South Asia, Campylobacter spp. are one of the most common bacterial diarrheal pathogens affecting children but there is a paucity of data on species, risk factors and attributable sources. Although a few studies were available, the epidemiology of campylobacteriosis remains uncertain. To understand the true burden and sources of infection, more detailed studies are needed collecting data from human, animal and environmental sources and using both culture and genomic tools.

Keywords: Campylobacter; Children; Diarrheal disease; Gastroenteritis; South Asia.