[Analysis of the epidemiological pattern of Shigellosis in Barcelona between 1988 and 2012: Is it an emerging sexually transmitted infection?].

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to describe the evolution and epidemiologic characteristics of shigellosis patients over a 25 year period in a large city.

METHODS

Shigellosis is a notifiable disease in Spain since 1988. Cases are analyzed in Barcelona residents included in the registry between 1988-2012. A descriptive analysis by sex, age, mode of transmission and Shigella species is presented. Trend analysis and time series were performed.

RESULTS

Of the 559 cases analyzed, 60.15% were males. A sustained increase was observed in the trend since 2008 in males (p<0,05), especially at the expense of males who had no history of food poisoning or travel to endemic areas. The increasing tendency was greater in males from 21 to 60 years, both for S. flexneri (since 2009), and for S. sonnei (since 2004). In 2012 it was noted that in the men with S. flexneri, the 63% were men who have sex with men.

CONCLUSIONS

An increased trend was detected in men who had no history of food poisoning or travel to endemic areas. This increase points to a change in the pattern of shigellosis, becoming predominantly male and its main mechanism probably by sexual transmission.