What is "bacillary dysentery"

n : an acute infection of the intestine by Shigella bacteria; characterized by diarrhea and fever and abdominal pains [syn: shigellosis]

Bacillary dysentery is a type of dysentery, and is a severe form of shigellosis.

Bacillary dysentery is associated with species of bacteria from the Enterobacteriaceae family. The term is usually restricted to Shigella infections.

Shigellosis is caused by one of several types of Shigella bacteria. Three species are associated with bacillary dysentery: Shigella sonnei, Shigella flexneri and Shigella dysenteriae. A study in China indicated that Shigella flexneri 2a was the most common serotype.

Salmonellosis caused by Salmonella enterica (serovar Typhimurium) has also been described as a cause of bacillary dysentery, though this definition is less common. It is sometimes listed as an explicit differential diagnosis of bacillary dysentery, as opposed to a cause.

Bacillary dysentery should not be confused with diarrhea caused by a bacterial infection. One characteristic of bacillary dysentery is blood in stool, which is the result of invasion of the mucosa by the pathogen.