Background

In France, no previous studies have focused specifically on health problems among medical students during internships abroad including the clinical symptoms suggestive of infectious diseases and the acquisition of pathogen carriage.

Methods

Clinical follow up and qPCR based respiratory, gastrointestinal and vaginal pathogen carriage before and after travel were prospectively assessed in a cohort of medical students departing from Marseille, France.

Results

134 students were included. 73.9%, 38.8% and 5.0% of students reported gastrointestinal, respiratory and vaginal symptoms, respectively. The acquisition rate of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) and Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) was 53% and 41%, respectively. The acquisition of respiratory viruses was low but associated with persisting symptoms, while bacterial acquisition ranged from 3.3% for Streptococcus pyogenes to 15.0% for Haemophilus influenzae. Gardnerella vaginalis and Atopobium vaginae acquisition rates were 7.7% and 14.3% respectively. Five students (5.1%) had molecular quantification criteria for bacterial vaginosis on return.

Conclusion

This preliminary study demonstrates that besides the known risk of gastrointestinal and respiratory infections and associated changes in intestinal and respiratory microbiota, medical students abroad may also experience changes in vaginal microbiota leading, in some cases, to clinical symptoms or the acquisition of bacterial vaginosis, which may be asymptomatic.

中文翻译：

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出国旅行的法国医学生的传染病症状和微生物携带：一项前瞻性研究。

背景

在法国，之前没有研究专门关注医学生在国外实习期间的健康问题，包括提示传染病的临床症状和病原体携带的获得。

方法

对一组从法国马赛出发的医学生进行了临床随访和基于 qPCR 的旅行前后呼吸道、胃肠道和阴道病原体携带情况的前瞻性评估。

结果

其中包括 134 名学生。分别有73.9%、38.8%和5.0%的学生报告有胃肠道、呼吸道和阴道症状。肠聚集性大肠埃希菌（EAEC）和肠病原性大肠埃希菌（EPEC）的获得率分别为53%和41%。呼吸道病毒的感染率较低，但与持续症状相关，而细菌的感染率从化脓性链球菌的 3.3% 到流感嗜血杆菌的 15.0%不等。阴道加德纳菌和阴道阿托波菌的获得率分别为7.7%和14.3%。五名学生 (5.1%) 返校后达到了细菌性阴道病的分子定量标准。

结论

这项初步研究表明，除了已知的胃肠道和呼吸道感染风险以及肠道和呼吸道微生物群的相关变化之外，国外的医学生也可能会经历阴道微生物群的变化，在某些情况下导致临床症状或获得细菌性阴道病，这可能是无症状的。