The transcontinental country of Azerbaijan is reporting 12 cases of bacillary dysentery due to the bacterium, Shigella, according to an Azer News report today.
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At least four cases of dysentery were registered in the capital city of Baku and eight cases of the disease were registered in other regions of the country during January-July time frame.
This compares to 24 similar cases on the territory of the Republic in 2013, half in Baku.
According to Rubaba Mansurova, the epidemiologist of the Republican Center of Hygiene and Epidemiology of Azerbaijani Ministry of Health, no fatalities have been recorded from the dysentery cases. Mansurova says that the quality of medical services in the country has reduced this and other types of infections from becoming worse in scope.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says shigellosis is an infectious disease caused by a group of bacteria called Shigella. Most who are infected with Shigella develop diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps starting a day or two after they are exposed to the bacteria. The diarrhea is often bloody. Shigellosis usually resolves in 5 to 7 days. Persons with shigellosis in the United States rarely require hospitalization. A severe infection with high fever may be associated with seizures in children less than 2 years old. Some persons who are infected may have no symptoms at all, but may still pass the Shigella bacteria to others.
