Children Hospitalized with High Fever and Bloody Diarrhea from a Kindergarten in Yerevan

On May 3, the Arabkir Medical Complex informed the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the Ministry of Health of Armenia about the hospitalization of three children with a preliminary diagnosis of intestinal infection and acute gastroenteritis. Among them, one is 6 years old, and two are 5 years old.

The children's complaints began on May 1, including bloody diarrhea and a fever of 38-39 degrees Celsius. A laboratory examination of the fecal samples taken during their hospitalization revealed the presence of E. Coli, leading to a final diagnosis of 'Escherichiosis.' This information was reported by the Ministry of Health of Armenia.

Epidemiological investigations revealed that the children attended kindergarten 'N' in Yerevan, and three other children from the same kindergarten are currently at home showing symptoms characteristic of an intestinal infection. Another child exhibiting the same symptoms in the kindergarten has been isolated.

In total, 67 samples were taken from environmental surfaces for disinfection quality testing, 2 water samples for bacteriological examination, and 7 food samples including lentil soup, oatmeal, meat soup, chicken pilaf, noodle pilaf, mashed potatoes, and milk.

All 10 staff members were sampled for laboratory testing regarding both staphylococci and bacterial strains. Additionally, samples were collected from 53 kindergarten students for bacteriological laboratory research.