Introduction: Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) is the presence of bacteria in significant quantity in the absence of signs and symptoms of urinary tract infection (UTI). ASB, if it occurs during pregnancy, can cause serious complications both among fetus and pregnant women. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of ASB, its associated factors, and antimicrobial susceptibility profile of bacterial isolates among pregnant women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from July to September 2019 among 290 pregnant women at

Background. Multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae particularly extended-spectrum beta-lactamase producers have become a major public health threat. Despite efforts to limit their spread, rates of multidrug-resistance members of the Enterobacteriaceae continue to increase throughout the world causing increased morbidity and mortality and raised costs for medical care. Objective. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of multidrug resistance and extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Methods. Four hundred forty Enterobacteriaceae isolates from outpatients referred to Arsho Advanced Medical Laboratory were identified and assessed for their antimicrobial resistance pattern by using the automated VITEK 2 compact system. Extended-spectrum β-lactamase production was determined by the VITEK 2 automated compact system using the extended-spectrum β-lactamase test panel as per the instruction of the manufacturer. Results. The overall resistance rates of Enterobacteriaceae against cephalosporins, aminoglycosides, and fluoroquinolones were high. Nitrofurantoin with a resistance rate of 14.3% and piperacillin/tazobactam combination with a resistance rate of 17.3% were better active against this group of Gram-negative bacteria. Out of 440 isolates of Enterobacteriaceae, 42.1% were multidrug-resistant of which 34.3% and 8.95% were extensively drug-resistant and pan-drug resistant, respectively. Among 185 multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, 63.9% of the isolates produced extended-spectrum β-lactamase of which 75.4%, 19.5%, 1.7%, 2.5%, and 0.8% were E. coli, K. pneumoniae, C. freundii, E. cloacae, and P. mirabilis, respectively. Conclusions. The present study demonstrated high prevalence rates of multidrug-resistant and extended-spectrum-beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. In order to combat these problems, infection control strategy and proper antibiotic policies should be formulated.

Background Multidrug resistant, extremely drug-resistant, pan-drug resistant, carbapenem-resistant, and carbapenemase-producing gram-negative bacteria are becoming more common in health care settings and are posing a growing threat to public health. Objective The study was aimed to detect and phenotypically characterize carbapenem no- susceptible gram-negative bacilli at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute. Materials and methods A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted from June 30, 2019, to May 30, 2020, at the national reference laboratory of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute. Clinical samples were collected, inoculated, and incubated for each sample in accordance with standard protocol. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was conducted using Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. Identification was done using the traditional biochemical method. Multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant isolates were classified using a standardized definition established by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the United States Centers for Disease Prevention and Control. Gram-negative organisms with reduced susceptibility to carbapenem antibiotics were considered candidate carbapenemase producers and subjected to modified carbapenem inactivation and simplified carbapenem inactivation methods. Meropenem with EDTA was used to differentiate metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) from serine carbapenemase. Meropenem (MRP)/meropenem + phenylboronic acid (MBO) were used to differentiate Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) from other serine carbapenemase producing gram-negative organisms. Results A total of 1,337 clinical specimens were analyzed, of which 429 gram-negative bacterial isolates were recovered. Out of 429 isolates, 319, 74, and 36 were Enterobacterales, Acinetobacter species, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa respectively. In our study, the prevalence of multidrug-resistant, extensively drug-resistant, carbapenemase-producing, and carbapenem nonsusceptible gram-negative bacilli were 45.2%, 7.7%, 5.4%, and 15.4% respectively. Out of 429 isolates, 66 demonstrated reduced susceptibility to the antibiotics meropenem and imipenem. These isolates were tested for carbapenemase production of which 34.8% (23/66) were carbapenemase producers. Out of 23 carbapenemase positive gram-negative bacteria, ten (10) and thirteen (13) were metallo-beta-lactamase and serine carbapenemase respectively. Three of 13 serine carbapenemase positive organisms were Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase. Conclusion This study revealed an alarming level of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with a high prevalence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extremely drug-resistant, carbapenemase-producing gram-negative bacteria, particularly among intensive care unit patients at the health facility level. These findings point to a scenario in which clinical management of infected patients becomes increasingly difficult and necessitates the use of “last-resort” antimicrobials likely exacerbating the magnitude of the global AMR crisis. This mandates robust AMR monitoring and an infection prevention and control program.

No abstract

Background Acinetobacter species have been a leading cause of nosocomial infections, causing significant morbidity and mortality over the entire world including Ethiopia. The most important features of A. baumannii are its ability to persist in the hospital environment and rapidly develop resistance to a wide variety of antibiotics. This study aimed to determine trend of antimicrobial resistance in Acinetobacter species over a five years period. Method A retrospective data regarding occurrence and antimicrobial resistance of Acinetobacter species recovered from clinical specimens referred to the national reference laboratory was extracted from microbiology laboratory data source covering a time range from 2014 to 2018. Socio-demographic characteristics and laboratory record data was analyzed using SPSS 20. Results A total of 102 strains of Acinetobacter species were analyzed from various clinical specimens. Majority of them were from pus (33.3%) followed by blood (23.5%), urine (15.6%) and body fluid (11.7%). Significant ascending trends of antimicrobial resistance was shown for meropenem (12.5% to 60.7%), ceftazidime (82.1% to 100%), ciprofloxacin (59.4% to 74.4%), ceftriaxone (87.1% to 98.6%), cefepime (80.0% to 93.3%) and pipracillin- tazobactam (67.8% to 96.3%). However, there was descending trend of antimicrobial resistance for tobramycin (56.5% to 42.8%), amikacin (42.1% to 31.4%) and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (79.0 to 68.2%). The overall rate of carbapenem non-susceptible and multidrug resistance rates in Acinetobacter species were 56.7% and 71.6%.respectively. Conclusion A five year antimicrobial resistance trend analysis of Acinetobacter species showed increasing MDR and resistance to high potent antimicrobial agents posing therapeutic challenge in our Hospitals and health care settings. Continuous surveillance and appropriate infection prevention and control strategies need to be strengthened to circumvent the spread of multidrug resistant pathogens in health care facilities.