Postinfectious Chronic Health Consequences of Acute Enteric Infections

Acute enteric infections are a common health event, with foodborne infections affecting one out of six each year in the United States alone. The direct and indirect costs of acute disease are substantial and substantiate an important public health problem. While not a new concept, evidence is emerging that support the notion that the magnitude of the disease burden is significantly increased when accounting for the myriad of chronic health consequences that are known to follow these common infections. This article summarizes the literature to date supporting a causal association with many of the reported postinfectious sequelae of acute enteric infection, as well as provides emerging data on new associations of interest. Finally, important gaps in our understanding the postinfectious sequelae of acute enteric infection are discussed.