For health professionals: Typhoid fever

Get detailed information on typhoid fever for health professionals.

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What health professionals need to know about typhoid fever

Typhoid fever is caused by the Salmonella enterica bacteria, subspecies enterica, serovar typhi.

Exposure to the causative pathogen is usually through ingesting water or food that has been contaminated by feces or urine from:

  • an ill individual
  • a chronic carrier

Typhoid fever is a nationally notifiable disease in all provinces and territories.

Cases are reported to:

Clinical manifestations

Typhoid fever is a systemic illness of varying severity. The clinical course ranges from mild illness with low-grade fever to severe systemic disease with abdominal perforation and extra-intestinal infection.

Diagnosis

Monitor for the listed clinical manifestations and confirm diagnosis by:

  • isolation from stool, urine or blood
  • serotyping to identify the serovar typhi

Treatment

Treatment depends on the clinical symptoms presented by the patient, but may include:

  • fluid and electrolyte replacement
  • pharmacologic control of nausea and vomiting
  • antibiotics (for both carriers and those with symptoms)

Surveillance

Health professionals in Canada play a critical role in identifying and reporting cases of typhoid fever. See the surveillance section for more information on surveillance in Canada.

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