Evaluation of underreporting of salmonellosis and shigellosis hospitalised cases in Greece, 2011: results of a capture-recapture study and a hospital registry review.

Background: Salmonellosis and shigellosis are mandatorily notifiable diseases in Greece. Underreporting of both diseases has been postulated but there has not been any national study to quantify it. The objective of this study was to: a) estimate underreporting of hospitalised cases at public Greek hospitals in 2011 with a capture-recapture (C-RC) study, b) evaluate the accuracy of this estimation, c) investigate the possible impact of specific factors on notification rates, and d) estimate community incidence of both diseases.

Phenotypic and molecular characterisation of multiresistant monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium (1,4,[5],12:i:-) in Greece, 2006 to 2011.

Recently, multiresistant Salmonella enterica serovar1,4,[5],12:i:-, a monophasic variant of S. Typhimurium(1,4,[5],12:i:1,2) emerged, and is now among the most common serovars isolated from humans in many countries.In Greece, monophasic Typhimurium which was recorded for the first time in human isolates in 2007(0.

Correlation between bacterial indicators and bacteriophages in sewage and sludge.

The use of bacteriophages as potential indicators of faecal pollution has recently been studied. The correlation of the number of bacterial indicators and the presence of three groups of bacteriophages, namely somatic coliphages (SOMCPH), F-RNA-specific phages (FRNAPH) and phages of Bacteroides fragilis (BFRPH), in raw and treated wastewater and sludge is presented in this study. Raw and treated wastewater and sewage sludge samples from two wastewater treatment plants in Athens were collected on a monthly basis, over a 2-year period, and analysed for total coliforms, Escherichia coli, intestinal enterococci and the three groups of bacteriophages.

PCR detection of Salmonella spp. using primers targeting the quorum sensing gene sdiA.

Bacteria communicate with one another and with their host using chemical signalling molecules. This phenomenon is generally described as quorum sensing. A set of primers for PCR detection of Salmonella spp.

The use of bacteriophages for monitoring the microbiological quality of sewage sludge.

The use of bacteriophages as potential indicators of faecal pollution has recently been studied. The correlation of the number of bacterial indicators and the presence of three groups of bacteriophages, namely somatic coliphages (SOMCPH), F-RNA specific phages (FRNAPH) and phages of Bacteroides fragilis (BFRPH), in raw and treated sludge is presented in this study. Raw and anaerobically digested sewage sludge samples from two wastewater treatment plants in Athens were collected on a monthly basis, over a 2-year period, and analyzed for total coliforms, E.