Health Topic

Salmonella Infections

Salmonella is a group of bacteria that is a common cause of foodborne illness. Learn the symptoms. Know when to, and who should see a doctor.

Reviewed Reviewed by a registered pharmacistGeneral information

Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.

About Salmonella Infections

Salmonella is the name of a group of bacteria. In the United States, it is a common cause of foodborne illness. Salmonella occurs in raw poultry, eggs, beef, and sometimes on unwashed fruit and vegetables. You also can get infected after handling pets, especially reptiles like snakes, turtles, and lizards.

Symptoms include:

  • Fever
  • Diarrhea
  • Abdominal cramps
  • Headache
  • Possible nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite

Symptoms usually last 4-7 days. Your health care provider diagnoses the infection with a stool test. Most people get better without treatment. Infection can be more serious in older adults, infants, and people with chronic health problems. If Salmonella gets into the bloodstream, it can be serious. The usual treatment is antibiotics.

Typhoid fever, a more serious disease caused by Salmonella, is not common in the United States. It frequently occurs in developing countries.

It sits within Infections.

The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.

Research on Salmonella Infections

91 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.

What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.

Research currently under way

Research already completed

Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.

Where to read more

Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.

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Diagnosis and Tests

Treatments and Therapies

Prevention and Risk Factors

Related Issues

Clinical Trials

Patient Handouts

Medical subject headings

Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Salmonella Infections. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.

This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Salmonella Infections, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.