Serotype and phage type distribution of Salmonella strains isolated from humans, cattle, pigs, and chickens in the Netherlands from 1984 to 2001

We studied serotypes and phage types of Salmonella strains isolated from humans and animals in The Netherlands over the period 1984 to 2001. All human strains (n = 59,168) were clinical isolates. The animal strains (n = 65,567) were from clinical and nonclinical infections. All isolates were serotyped, and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium and serovar Enteritidis strains were further phage typed. The most prevalent serotypes were as follows: in humans, serovars Typhimurium and Enteritidis; in cattle, serovars Typhimurium and Dublin; in pigs, serovar Typhimurium; and in chickens, serovars Enteritidis, Infantis, and Typhimurium. Serovar Enteritidis phage type 4 (pt 4) was the most common phage type in humans and chickens. Serovar Typhimurium pt 510 was the most prevalent serovar Typhimurium phage type in humans and pigs, pt 200 was the most prevalent serovar Typhimurium phage type in cattle, and pt 150 was the most prevalent serovar Typhimurium phage type in chickens. Analysis of the distribution of sero- and phage types during the study period indicated that types shifted over time in humans and animals. Serovar Typhimurium DT 104 emerged in 1991 in humans, cattle, pigs, and chickens and became the most common serovar Typhimurium phage type in 2001. In general, similar sero- and phage types were found in humans and animals. although distinct types were more common in animals. Between the animal species, the sero- and phage type distributions varied considerably.