Abstract

The frequency of diarrhoeagenic bacteria, isolated from all sampling areas showed thatEscherichia coli was recorded as the predominant bacterium with 58.57%, followed byVibrio, Salmonella, Aeromonas, Shigella, Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Proteus andStaphylococcus with 40.58, 33.47, 30.54, 10.46, 10.04, 10.04, 7.11 and 5.43%, respectively. E. coli is the most significant aetiological agent of childhood diarrhoea and represents a major public health problem in many developing countries. Vibrio is well known as a causative agent of gastrointestinal, extra intestinal and wound infections leading to fatalities in some cases. Other diarrhoeagenic bacteria may be significant and cause diarrhoeal infection in this study area.
 
Key words: Gastroenteritis, paediatric infections, diarrhoeagenic bacteria.