Title: An ecological study of diarrhoeagenic E.coli associated with indiscriminate waste dumps and under five diarrhoea in six informal settlements in Durban, eThekwini Municipality, South Africa

Authors: Preshod Sewnand Ramlal; E.J. Kistnasamy; A.O. Olaniran

Addresses: Department of Community Health Studies, Durban University of Technology, South Africa ' Department of Community Health Studies, Durban University of Technology, South Africa ' Discipline of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Faculty of Science and Agriculture, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Abstract: Indiscriminate waste dumps represent an ecological source of diarrhoeagenic E.coli (DEC) in urban informal settlements of Durban, eThekwini Municipality, South Africa. The recovery of four DEC pathotypes including enterohaemorrhagic E.coli (EHEC) (15.08%), enteropathogenic E.coli (EPEC) (1.54%), enterotoxigenic E.coli (ETEC) (1.85%) and enteroaggregative E.coli (EAEC) (21.23%) suggest that its persistence in waste-dump soil has the ability to cause under five diarrhoea. Additionally, a significant relationship (P = 0.0011) between the pathotypes identified and location of the six settlements, implied that irrespective of where these children resided, they were at potential risk of exposure to EHEC, EPEC, ETEC and EAEC when they played among these waste dump sites. Therefore, it is imperative that local government authorities take a collective leading role in combating the spread of indiscriminate dumping to prevent waste-dump exposure, specifically as ecological reservoirs of DEC pathogens in urban informal settlements.

Keywords: indiscriminate dumping in informal settlements; E.coli; diarrhoeagenic E.coli pathotypes; under five diarrhoea; waste-dump exposure; ecological reservoirs of DEC pathogens.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEWM.2017.090056

International Journal of Environment and Waste Management, 2017 Vol.20 No.4, pp.300 - 323

Received: 21 Dec 2016
Accepted: 04 Oct 2017
Published online: 27 Feb 2018 *

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