and Antimicrobial Resistance

Few studies have evaluated the health consequences of antimicrobial-resistant Salmonella strains associated with outbreaks. Among 32 outbreaks occurring in the United States from 1984 to 2002, 22 % of 13,286 persons in 10 Salmonella-resistant outbreaks were hospitalized, com-pared with 8 % of 2,194 persons in 22 outbreaks caused by pansusceptible Salmonella strains (p<0.01). Nontyphoidal Salmonella strains are a frequent cause offoodborne disease outbreaks in the United States; they account for ≈13 % of outbreaks reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from 1993 to 1997 (1). Antimicrobial resistance is common among salmonel-lae and has been increasing, particularly in Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium, the most common Salmonella serotype (2,3). In the 1990s, a strain of S. Typhimurium resistant to ampicillin, chloramphenicol