National surveillance misses most infectious intestinal disease

Public concern over food poisoning is high, and in 1992 the Department of Health initiated a study to find out what proportion of cases of infectious intestinal disease was reported and whether unreported cases were caused by different organisms, foodborne or otherwise. Wheeler et al (p 1046) studied volunteers in 70 practices throughout England. They estimated that there are 9.4 million cases of infectious intestinal disease annually. Although in 1 in 6 cases the patient attends general practice, only 1 in 136 reach the national laboratory surveillance system. However, a higher proportion of the cases caused by to bacterial infection, which are generally more severe, are reported.

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Relevant Article

Study of infectious intestinal disease in England: rates in the community, presenting to general practice, and reported to national surveillance

Jeremy G Wheeler, Dinesh Sethi, John M Cowden, Patrick G Wall, Laura C Rodrigues, David S Tompkins, Michael J Hudson, and Paul J Roderick
BMJ 1999 318: 1046-1050. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]