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Background Diarrhea is an important cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In Africa and Ghana in particular, it is estimated to contribute directly to 19 and 25% of pediatric mortality among children under 5 years, respectively. Methods Surveillance for hospitalized acute diarrheal illness was initiated in November 2010 through October 2012 in a referral hospital in southern Ghana, and a teaching hospital in northern Ghana. Consenting hospitalized patients who met a standardized case definition for acute diarrheal illness provided demographic and epidemiologic data. Stool samples were collected and tested by culture for bacteria and by enzyme immunoassays for a panel of viruses and parasites. Results A total of 429 patients were enrolled; 216 (50.3%) were under 5 years, and 221 (51.5%) were females. Stool samples were received from 153 patients. Culture isolates included Shigella sp., Salmonella spp., Plesiomonas sp. and Vibrio cholerae. Of 147 samples tested for viruses, 41 (27.9%) were positive for rotaviruses, 11 (7.5%) for astroviruses, 10 (6.8%) for noroviruses, and 8 (5.4%) for adenoviruses. Of 116 samples tested for parasitic infections; 4 (3.4%) were positive for Cryptosporidium sp. and 3 (2.6%) for Giardia lamblia. Of the enrolled patients, 78.8% had taken antibiotics prior to sample collection. Conclusions Diarrheal pathogens were identified across all ages, however, predominantly (81%) in the children under 5 years of age. This study also detected high antibiotic use which has the potential of increasing antibiotic resistance. The most common enteric pathogen detected (49.4%) was rotavirus. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-017-2621-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC), Division of Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System conducts disease surveillance through a global network of US Department of Defense research laboratories and partnerships with foreign ministries of agriculture, health and livestock development in over 90 countries worldwide. In 2010, AFHSC supported zoonosis survey efforts were organized into four main categories: (i) development of field assays for animal disease surveillance during deployments and in resource limited environments, (ii) determining zoonotic disease prevalence in high-contact species which may serve as important reservoirs of diseases and sources of transmission, (iii) surveillance in high-risk human populations which are more likely to become exposed and subsequently infected with zoonotic pathogens and (iv) surveillance at the human-animal interface examining zoonotic disease prevalence and transmission within and between human and animal populations. These efforts have aided in the detection, identification and quantification of the burden of zoonotic diseases such as anthrax, brucellosis, Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever, dengue fever, Hantaan virus, influenza, Lassa fever, leptospirosis, melioidosis, Q fever, Rift Valley fever, sandfly fever Sicilian virus, sandfly fever Naples virus, tuberculosis and West Nile virus, which are of military and public health importance. Future zoonotic surveillance efforts will seek to develop local capacity for zoonotic surveillance focusing on high risk populations at the human-animal interface.

The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC), Division of Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System conducts disease surveillance through a global network of US Department of Defense research laboratories and partnerships with foreign ministries of agriculture, health and livestock development in over 90 countries worldwide. In 2010, AFHSC supported zoonosis survey efforts were organized into four main categories: (i) development of field assays for animal disease surveillance during deployments and in resource limited environments, (ii) determining zoonotic disease prevalence in high-contact species which may serve as important reservoirs of diseases and sources of transmission, (iii) surveillance in high-risk human populations which are more likely to become exposed and subsequently infected with zoonotic pathogens and (iv) surveillance at the human-animal interface examining zoonotic disease prevalence and transmission within and between human and animal populations. These efforts have aided in the detection, identification and quantification of the burden of zoonotic diseases such as anthrax, brucellosis, Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever, dengue fever, Hantaan virus, influenza, Lassa fever, leptospirosis, melioidosis, Q fever, Rift Valley fever, sandfly fever Sicilian virus, sandfly fever Naples virus, tuberculosis and West Nile virus, which are of military and public health importance. Future zoonotic surveillance efforts will seek to develop local capacity for zoonotic surveillance focusing on high risk populations at the human-animal interface.