The antimicrobial susceptibilities of bacteria isolated from various sources in the South- East of Nigeria were studied with the aim of providing data on resistance patterns as well as highlighting any implications of the findings to health and economy. The antibiotic susceptibilities of bacteria isolates including
Escherichia coli
(n=6),
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
(n=9), a typed sample of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 10145,
Salmonella typhi
(n=3),
Klebsiella pneumoniae
(n=1),
Shigella dysenteriae
(n=1),
Staphylococcus aureus
(n=5) and
Streptococcus pneumoniae
(n=1) were determined using the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method on Mueller-Hinton agar. The findings revealed that all the isolates showed multiple antibiotic resistances ranging from 30% to 100%, intermediate resistance 0%-20% and susceptibility 9.75-60%. Five (18.4%) isolates showed ‘pan-resistance’ (100%). The highest resistance (100%) was shown to ampicillin, nalidixic acid, augmentin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and cephaplexin. The highest susceptibility was shown to levofloxacin (100%), ofloxaxin (66.7%), ciprofloxacin (60%) and perfloxacin (50%). The findings support the claim that ciprofloxacin is still the most effective second line broad spectrum antibiotic. The implications of drug resistance in health and economy, which include higher mortality rates, longer duration of illness and treatment, increased health-care costs and economic burden, the resort to alternative herbal treatments which further compound health problems and the emergence of ‘pan-resistant’ bacterial pathogens were highlighted. Proffered solutions include appropriate use of antibiotics by health workers, concerted efforts to control procurement and use of antibiotics, and the implementation of a regional and nationwide surveillance system to monitor antimicrobial resistance trends in Nigeria.
