Urea-hydrolyzing Vibrio parahaemolyticus associated with acute gastroenteritis

A case of gastroenteritis caused by a urea-hydrolyzing strain of Vibrio parahaemolyticus is presented. Urea-hydrolyzing strains of Vibrio parahaemolyticus have rarely been reported and have not been described previously as a cause of gastroenteritis in the United States. With the exception of urea hydrolysis and the methyl red test, the isolate had all the characteristics of V. parahaemolyticus. The need to screen suspicious non-lactose fermenting colonies from stool specimens with the oxidase test is emphasized.