Food handlers as a potential hazard in transmission of pathogens in Dakahlia G, Egypt

553 faecal samples from food handlers in Dakahlia Governorate were examined for intestinal pathogens. Pathogenic bacteria were isolated from 43 cases, of which 20 isolates were Shigella, 15 Salmonella and 8 E. coil. Sh. flexneri and Sal. paratyphi [B] were the most common organisms. Faecal samples of 226 cases had one or more intestinal parasites, as E. histolytica, S. mansoni, Ascaris, and some few other parasites. The role of food handlers as a potential hazard in transmission of these intestinal pathogens was discussed