A Case-Case Comparison of<i>Campylobacter coli</i>and<i>Campylobacter jejuni</i>Infection: A Tool for Generating Hypotheses

TLDR

Understanding campylobacteriosis epidemiology is essential for prevention, yet case‑case analysis may miss shared exposures and misestimate population risk. The study compares C. coli and C. jejuni cases via case‑case analysis to generate infection hypotheses using sentinel surveillance data from England and Wales.

Abstract

Abstract Preventing campylobacteriosis depends on a thorough understanding of its epidemiology. We used case-case analysis to compare cases of Campylobacter coli infection with cases of C. jejuni infection, to generate hypotheses for infection from standardized, population-based sentinel surveillance information in England and Wales. Persons with C. coli infection were more likely to have drunk bottled water than were those with C. jejuni infection and, in general, were more likely to have eaten pâté. Important differences in exposures were identified for these two Campylobacter species. Exposures that are a risk for infection for both comparison groups might not be identified or might be underestimated by case-case analysis. Similarly, the magnitude or direction of population risk cannot be assessed accurately. Nevertheless, our findings suggest that case-control studies should be conducted at the species level.