What does salmonellosis mean?
Salmonellosis is an infectious disease caused by bacteria of the genus Salmonella. It is commonly associated with eating food contaminated by infected animals or unsafe preparation and handling, although it can also spread through person-to-person contact or environmental exposure. Its principal symptoms include diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps, nausea, and vomiting. Most people recover without specific treatment, but infection can become serious, particularly for infants, older adults, pregnant people, and those with weakened immune systems. The term is most often encountered in medical reports, public-health announcements, and news coverage of foodborne outbreaks. In nontechnical contexts, salmonella food poisoning may be used instead. Salmonellosis should not be confused with salmonella itself: the latter can name the bacterium or bacterial genus, while salmonellosis denotes the illness. Because the infection can involve contaminated food and outbreak investigations, recognizing the word is useful in both health information and everyday discussions about food safety.
nounAn infectious disease caused by bacteria of the genus Salmonella, most commonly acquired through contaminated food and causing gastroenteritis, fever, abdominal cramps, and sometimes severe complications.
- An infectious disease caused by Salmonella bacteria, especially the foodborne form characterized by gastroenteritis, fever, and abdominal cramps.
"Health officials warned diners to avoid the restaurant after several patrons reported salmonellosis."
"The patient was diagnosed with salmonellosis after laboratory tests confirmed the presence of Salmonella bacteria."
"Cases of salmonellosis increased during the summer, leading investigators to inspect several food suppliers."
The plural is uncommon in general writing but can be used when referring to multiple cases of the disease.
"Several salmonelloses were confirmed during the outbreak investigation."
Despite its fish-like name, salmonellosis is named after bacteriologist Daniel Elmer Salmon, not salmon.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does salmonellosis come from?
Salmonellosis was formed from Salmonella with the suffix -osis, a medical term derived through New Latin from a Greek element associated with disease or abnormal condition. Salmonella was named in honor of the American zoologist and bacteriologist Daniel Elmer Salmon. The resulting term therefore identifies the disease caused by organisms belonging to the Salmonella genus.
How salmonellosis is actually used
Salmonellosis is a formal medical term. In everyday speech, it may be described as salmonella food poisoning. Medical writing generally treats it as a mass noun, although the plural salmonelloses is used when referring to multiple cases.
Easily confused with salmonellosis
Salmonella may refer to the bacterium or its genus, whereas salmonellosis refers to the disease caused by infection with the bacterium.