Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli are two of the main causes of foodborne\ndisease globally, and while they have been implicated as possible causes of foodborne disease within\nthe Caribbean region, the actual incidence is unknown. Trinidad and Tobago, one of the larger\ncountries in the Caribbean, has an estimated annual foodborne disease burden of over 100,000 cases\nand, similar to other countries, the etiology of most of these cases is unknown. Both pathogens\ncan reside as part of the normal gastrointestinal microflora of many wild and domestic animals,\nwith animals acting as reservoirs, spillover hosts, or dead-end hosts. Carriage in animal species can be\nasymptomatic or, in the case of Salmonella in particular, there may be clinical manifestation in animals,\nwhich resemble the disease seen in humans. In this review, we will focus on the epidemiology of\nthese two foodborne pathogens in Trinidad and Tobago and identify any knowledge gaps in the\npublished literature. The filling of this critical knowledge void is essential for the development and\nimplementation of appropriate mechanisms to reduce the dissemination and transmission of these\npathogens, not only in Trinidad and Tobago, but also in the wider Caribbean.
Loading....