Escherichia coli infection

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

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Escherichia coli (E. coi'li) is a gram-negative bacillus that is associated with the development of infections.

• To learn about the E. coli organism, click here.
• E. coli is often the causative pathogen responsible for the following diseases:

• Cystitis
• Enteritis
• Infectious arthritis
• Intra-abdominal and peritoneal infection
• Meningitis
• Osteomyelitis
• Pneumonia
• Prostitis
• Pyelonephritis
• Sepsis
• Skin and soft tissue infection
• Urethritis

• E. coli infections may be categorized into either enteric, uropathogenic, meningitis- and sepsis-associated, and other extraintestinal:

• Enteric: Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), enterotoxicogenic E. coli (ETEC), enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC), enteroinvasive E. coli (EIEC), and diffusely adherent E. coli (DAEC)
• Uropathogenic: Uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC)
• Meningitis- and sepsis-associated: Meningitis-associated E. coli (MNEC)
• Other extraintestinal: Extraintestinal E. coli (ExPEC)