Price Lance B, Graham Jay P, Lackey Leila G, Roess Amira, Vailes Rocio, Silbergeld Ellen
The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21224-2780, USA.
Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Dec;115(12):1738-42. doi: 10.1289/ehp.10191.
Antimicrobial use in food-animal production is an issue of growing concern. The application of antimicrobials for therapy, prophylaxis, and growth promotion in broiler chicken production has been associated with the emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial-resistant enteric bacteria. Although human exposure to antimicrobial-resistant bacteria through food has been examined extensively, little attention has been paid to occupational and environmental pathways of exposure.
Our objective was to measure the relative risk for colonization with antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli among poultry workers compared with community referents.
We collected stool samples and health surveys from 16 poultry workers and 33 community referents in the Delmarva region of Maryland and Virginia. E. coli was cultured from stool samples, and susceptibility to ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone, gentamicin, nitrofurantoin, and tetracycline was determined for each E. coli isolate. We estimated the relative risk for carrying antimicrobial-resistant E. coli among poultry workers compared with community referents.
Poultry workers had 32 times the odds of carrying gentamicin-resistant E. coli compared with community referents. The poultry workers were also at significantly increased risk of carrying multidrug-resistant E. coli.
Occupational exposure to antimicrobial-resistant E. coli from live-animal contact in the broiler chicken industry may be an important route of entry for antimicrobial-resistant E. coli into the community.
食品动物生产中抗菌药物的使用是一个日益受到关注的问题。在肉鸡生产中，将抗菌药物用于治疗、预防和促进生长与抗菌药物耐药性肠道细菌的出现和传播有关。尽管通过食物接触抗菌药物耐药细菌的情况已得到广泛研究，但职业和环境暴露途径却很少受到关注。
我们的目的是测量家禽工人与社区对照人群相比，感染抗菌药物耐药大肠杆菌的相对风险。
我们从马里兰州和弗吉尼亚州德尔马瓦地区的16名家禽工人和33名社区对照人群中收集了粪便样本并进行了健康调查。从粪便样本中培养大肠杆菌，并对每个大肠杆菌分离株测定其对氨苄西林、环丙沙星、头孢曲松、庆大霉素、呋喃妥因和四环素的敏感性。我们估计了家禽工人与社区对照人群相比携带抗菌药物耐药大肠杆菌的相对风险。
与社区对照人群相比，家禽工人携带庆大霉素耐药大肠杆菌的几率是其32倍。家禽工人携带多重耐药大肠杆菌的风险也显著增加。
在肉鸡行业中，通过接触活体动物而职业性暴露于抗菌药物耐药大肠杆菌可能是抗菌药物耐药大肠杆菌进入社区的一条重要途径。
