Enterotoxigenic E.coli In Coimbatore Drinking Water

Abstract

Water is one of the potential carriers of pathogenic microorganisms and can endanger health and life of humans and animals. About 50% of deaths (4.6 million) in children under 5 years of age occur due to diarrhoeal diseases caused by drinking polluted water. Kudoh and Zen-Yoji Studied 7 outbreaks of diarrhoea caused by Escherichia coli serotype O11 and O159, out of which two outbreaks were caused by contaminated water supply. In India, more than 70% of the epidemic emergencies are either waterborne or water related. Although a substantial amount of work has been carried out on common water-borne pathogens in India, unfortunately only a little information is available on the emerging waterborne pathogens. A regular surveillance of resource and drinking water is one of the major mainstays of containing dreaded and often fatal waterborne diseases.The use of antibiotics to combat these infections is a very common practice. The drug resistance displayed by Escherichia coli is indicative of indiscriminate use of antibiotics. This warrants the initiation of steps to prevent public health hazards. Resistance of Escherichia coli to antibiotics is not only an obstacle for the control of this infection but also poses a great threat to public health through transferable resistance determinant (R-factor) on enteric flora or other enterobacteria in man through direct colonization with resistant bacteria. The aim of the study was to isolate, serogroup and examine the antibiogram of Escherichia coli, present in drinking water sources in Coimbatore.