First Report of Human Gastroenteritis Caused by Escherichia coli O157:NM in Brazil.

In September 2005, the Sanitary Surveillance Service of Rio de Janeiro (SSS/RJ), Brazil, investigated a case of gastroenteritis involving a 13-year-old teenager hospitalized because of bloody diarrhea and severe abdominal pain. Owing to the severity of the symptoms, an epidemiological investigation was conducted in two states of Brazil. Escherichia coli O157:NM was isolated from stools and from a tomato and cheese salad prepared at the school canteen where the teenager attended. This is the first report of a human case of gastroenteritis related to E. coli O157:NM infection in Brazil.