Abstract:
Background: The emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a public health threat in
developing countries including Ethiopia; and there is a paucity of information regarding
antimicrobial resistance patterns of commonly isolated pathogens, particularly in the study
area. Hence, this study aimed to assess the microbiological profiles and resistance patterns of
pathogens among patients who visited a tertiary hospital in the study setting.
Methods: This study was based on secondary data sources from the hospital microbiology
database and culture reports between September 2019 and August 2020 at the University of
Gondar comprehensive specialized hospitals, Ethiopia. Data about socio-demographic characteristics and clinical parameters, types of specimens collected, culture results, and antibiotic resistance pattern were collected manually by using a data abstraction format from the
department of clinical bacteriology registration book and electronic database.
Results: A total of 5328 culture results were included in the final analysis. Bacterial growth
was documented only in 803 (15.1%) samples. From the positive culture results documented,
the highest positivity rate was reported from abscess (47.8%) followed by blood (26.2%) and
urine (15.1%) samples. Among the bacterial isolates S. aureus (32.5%), Klebsiella species
(17.9%), E. coli (14.8%) and Streptococcus species (7.4%) were the commonly identified
organisms. Of the 803 bacterial isolates, about 672 (83.6%) isolates were resistant to at least
one antibiotic and 19.7% isolates were MDR.
Conclusion: This study showed that Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia species,
and Escherichia coli were the commonest isolated pathogens. Antimicrobial resistance
among common isolates was high for most routinely used antibiotics, and some reserved
drugs like carbapenems and fourth-generation cephalosporin. Thus, this study may have
implications on patient management, drug procurement, local treatment guideline development, and rational use of antibiotics. Furthermore, this finding could also help to facilitate the
implementation of antimicrobial stewardship and infection prevention and control interventions within the hospital.
Description:
Infectious diseases are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality and the major
public health concern in developing countries.1 Different pathogens are responsible
for infectious diseases that cause morbidity and mortality and highly resistant to
commonly used antibiotics. Moreover, antibiotic resistance (AR) is a global health
