Prevalence of Salmonella spp. in chicken breasts for human consumption in four districts in Bogotá – Colombia.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of Salmonella spp. in chicken breasts for human consumption in four different districs in Bogotá. Materials and Methods: Seventy two samples were collected from different convinience stores and market places in the city. All the samples were processed using standarized microbiological and molecular methods to isolate and identify Salmonella spp. Results: The determined prevalence of Salmonella spp. was 29.2% (n=21), out of vwhich 52.4% (n=11) were obtained from convinience stores and 47.6% (n=10) from market places. The identified serovars were Salmonella enterica group IIIb, S. Bredeney and S. Virchow. The districs with highest prevalence of the pathogen were Usaqén and Fontibón Discussion: Previous studies done in Colombia have reported prevalence of Salmonella spp. around 27% in chicken carcasses, this is very similar to the prevalence observed in this study; these findings could be due to inadequate handling and storage practices of the product. Conclusion: The presence of Salmonella spp. was determined in the studied samples; this finding indicates the potential public health risk. These results demand further studies in countrywide base to determine the actual situation of this pathoge