This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Sign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Treatment of shigellosis

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Mild form of the disease is usually self-limiting and no treatment is necessary. However, it is important to maintain fluid balance with clear oral fluids, or in more severe cases intravenous infusion.

  • seek expert microbiology advice
  • antibiotic treatment is not required for all cases of shigellosis
  • cases with prolonged symptoms or complications may require antibiotics

First-line options are azithromycin, ciprofloxacin, or ceftriaxone. (1) Clinical indications for empirical antibiotics include all cases of fever with bloody diarrhoea, bacillary dysentery, and abdominal cramping. (2)

  • in the UK, note that the among GBMSM, the proportion of all Shigella spp. isolates that are multi-drug resistant, or XDR (extensively drug resistant) is very high, often exceeding 90% (3)

References:

  1. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC Yellow Book 2024: health information for international travel. Section 5: travel-associated infections & diseases - shigellosis. Jun 2023 [internet publication].
  2. Shane AL, Mody RK, Crump JA, et al. 2017 Infectious Diseases Society of America clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of infectious diarrhea. Clin Infect Dis. 2017 Nov 29;65(12):e45-80.
  3. Charles H et al. Spotlight on drug-resistant Shigella: raising awareness within general practice. BJGP 2023; 73 (729): 187-188. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgp23X732537

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.