enteric fever: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C2/Highly SpecializedTechnical/Medical
Quick answer
What does “enteric fever” mean?
A severe systemic infectious disease caused by Salmonella typhi or Salmonella paratyphi bacteria, primarily affecting the intestinal system and causing high fever, abdominal pain, and other systemic symptoms.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A severe systemic infectious disease caused by Salmonella typhi or Salmonella paratyphi bacteria, primarily affecting the intestinal system and causing high fever, abdominal pain, and other systemic symptoms.
While strictly referring to typhoid fever, the term is sometimes used in broader medical contexts to describe febrile illnesses with primary intestinal involvement, though this is less precise. In public health, it denotes diseases requiring specific surveillance and control measures due to fecal-oral transmission.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Usage is identical in professional medical contexts. In lay terms, 'typhoid fever' is more common in both regions. The term might appear slightly more often in British Commonwealth public health documents due to historical disease prevalence.
Connotations
Clinical, precise, and associated with epidemiology, travel medicine, and historical mortality. Carries connotations of serious, reportable illness.
Frequency
Extremely low frequency in general language. Almost exclusively found in medical literature, public health reports, and historical texts.
Grammar
How to Use “enteric fever” in a Sentence
Patient ___ contracted enteric fever.The diagnosis was ___.An outbreak of ___ occurred.___ is caused by Salmonella typhi.Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “enteric fever” in a Sentence
adjective
British English
- The enteric fever ward was isolated.
- Enteric fever symptoms can be insidious.
American English
- She presented with an enteric fever syndrome.
- Enteric fever surveillance data is crucial.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Virtually never used.
Academic
Used in medical, microbiological, epidemiological, and public health research and textbooks.
Everyday
Extremely rare. A layperson would say 'typhoid' or 'a severe bacterial infection.'
Technical
The primary domain. Used in clinical notes, lab reports, differential diagnoses, and international disease classification codes (e.g., ICD-10 A01.0).
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “enteric fever”
Neutral
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “enteric fever”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “enteric fever”
- Using 'enteric fever' to describe any fever with diarrhea. Confusing it with viral gastroenteritis. Misspelling as 'entric' or 'interic' fever.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
In most precise clinical usage, 'enteric fever' refers specifically to typhoid fever caused by S. typhi. Sometimes it is used as an umbrella term that also includes paratyphoid fever (caused by S. paratyphi). In common parlance, they are used interchangeably with 'typhoid.'
Yes, but it is rare and usually associated with travel to endemic areas or with consumption of food handled by a chronic carrier. Sporadic cases do occur.
The term 'enteric' derives from the Greek 'enteron,' meaning intestine. The name highlights the primary site of bacterial invasion and multiplication in the gastrointestinal tract's lymphoid tissue (Peyer's patches).
Enteric fever is a systemic illness with often gradual onset of high, sustained fever, headache, malaise, and abdominal pain, sometimes with constipation early on. Common viral/bacterial gastroenteritis typically presents with abrupt onset nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and lower-grade fever, primarily as an intestinal illness.
A severe systemic infectious disease caused by Salmonella typhi or Salmonella paratyphi bacteria, primarily affecting the intestinal system and causing high fever, abdominal pain, and other systemic symptoms.
Enteric fever is usually technical/medical in register.
Enteric fever: in British English it is pronounced /ɛnˌtɛr.ɪk ˈfiː.vər/, and in American English it is pronounced /ɛnˌtɛr.ɪk ˈfiː.vɚ/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
ENTERic fever ENTERs your intestines. Think: 'The fever that enters the enteric (intestinal) system.'
Conceptual Metaphor
DISEASE IS AN INVADER (invading the gut), FEVER IS A FIRE (burning the patient).
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is the most accurate definition of 'enteric fever'?