{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]],"date-time":"2026-06-04T14:25:14Z","timestamp":1780583114134,"version":"3.54.1"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,30]],"date-time":"2024-05-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1717027200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Microorganisms"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Infections with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are increasing in Denmark and elsewhere. STEC is also the most frequent cause of haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) in Danish children. Most cases are considered sporadic, while approximately one-third can be attributed to a known source of infection. Hence, we examined sources of sporadic STEC infection in Denmark. From January 2018 to December 2020, we conducted a prospective nationwide case\u2013control study among Danish adults and children. Cases with confirmed positive STEC infection were notified infections within the national laboratory surveillance system. Control persons were randomly selected from the Danish Civil Registration System, individually matched in age in 5-year bands and sex. Participants were invited by an electronic letter to complete either an adult or child questionnaire online. Univariate and adjusted matched odds ratios were computed for adults and children using conditional logistic regression. The study recruited 1583 STEC cases and 6228 controls. A total of 658 cases (42%) and 2155 controls (35%) were included in the analysis. Depending on age, univariate analysis adjusted for socio-demographic determinants showed that the consumption of boiled beef (mOR = 2.2, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.6\u20133.1) and fried minced beef (mOR = 1.6, CI: 1.2\u20132.1), drinking raw (unpasteurized) milk (mOR = 11, CI 1.1\u2013110), eating grilled food (mOR = 9.8, CI: 5.6\u201317) and having a household member using diapers (mOR = 2.1, CI: 1.4\u20133.2) were determinants of sporadic STEC infection. Further multivariate adjusted analysis resulted in the same determinants. This study confirms that beef is an overall important risk factor for STEC infection in Denmark. We also present evidence that a proportion of sporadic STEC infections in Denmark are determined by age-specific eating habits, environmental exposures and household structure, rather than being exclusively food-related. These findings are relevant for targeted public health actions and guidelines.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms12061109","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,30]],"date-time":"2024-05-30T03:45:08Z","timestamp":1717040708000},"page":"1109","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Determinants of Sporadic Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli (STEC) Infection in Denmark, 2018\u20132020: A Matched Case\u2013Control Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9251-6025","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Charlotte","family":"Kjels\u00f8","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lu\u00eds","family":"Alves de Sousa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"},{"name":"European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET), European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), 169 73 Solna, Sweden"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3931-4846","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Flemming","family":"Scheutz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Bacteria, Parasites & Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Susanne","family":"Schj\u00f8rring","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Bacteria, Parasites & Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Steen","family":"Ethelberg","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"},{"name":"Department of Public Global Health, Global Health Section, University of Copenhagen, 1050 Copenhagen, Denmark"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Katrin Gaardbo","family":"Kuhn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, Statens Serum Institut, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark"},{"name":"Department of Biostatistics & Epidemiology, Hudson College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, World Health Organization (2018). 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Protoc."}],"container-title":["Microorganisms"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2076-2607\/12\/6\/1109\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T14:50:46Z","timestamp":1760107846000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2076-2607\/12\/6\/1109"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,30]]},"references-count":31,"journal-issue":{"issue":"6","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,6]]}},"alternative-id":["microorganisms12061109"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/microorganisms12061109","relation":{},"ISSN":["2076-2607"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2076-2607","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,30]]}}}