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Diagnosis of intestinal yersiniosis
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025

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Of the clinical symptoms, the most significant is damage to the gastrointestinal tract (diarrhea), followed by the appearance of a polymorphic rash in the patient, mainly on the hands, feet, around the joints, enlargement of the liver, spleen, arthralgia, nodular rashes and other characteristic signs of the disease (prolonged fever, changes in the kidneys, heart, peripheral blood, etc.).
For laboratory diagnostics, PCR and bacteriological methods are of the greatest importance. Y. enterocolitica can be isolated from feces, blood, urine, pus, mucus from the pharynx, lymph nodes, surgical material, etc. Most often, the pathogen is isolated in the first 2-3 weeks from the onset of the disease, sometimes it can be isolated for up to 4 months. In articular and cutaneous forms, the pathogen is isolated very rarely. In these cases, serological diagnostics are used. RA is diagnosed with a live or killed culture of Yersinia and RNGA in the dynamics of the disease. Diagnostic titers in RA are 1:40-1:160, in RNGA - 1:100-1:200. Maximum titers of agglutinins decrease within 2 months.
Differential diagnostics
Intestinal yersiniosis should be differentiated primarily from scarlet fever, measles, enterovirus infection, rheumatism, sepsis, and typhoid-like diseases.
In most cases, it is not possible to clinically differentiate intestinal yersiniosis from pseudotuberculosis, and only the use of laboratory methods (isolation of the pathogen, immunological reactions) allows us to clarify the diagnosis of the disease.