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Abstract

Abattoirs are springing up in several locations within Port Harcourt to ease access to meat products as well as reduce cost of purchase and transportation. However, the presence of several pathogenic and antibiotic resistant microorganisms in abattoirs as a result of wastes generated in the process of preparations, have of recent been a public health concern as little or no care is taken in ensuring safe and proper disposal of abattoir wastes as well as purity of the service water used in abattoirs. In this study, samples (blood, water, swab and faeces) from three abattoirs in Port Harcourt were obtained and the isolation of Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was carried out using appropriate microbiological techniques. Methicillin resistance was determined using Cefoxitin and Oxacillin only while sensitivity tests were performed for other S. aureus isolates to different antibiotics using Gentamicin, Erythromycin, Augmentin, Ofloxacin, Cefuroxime, Ceftriaxone, Cloxacillin and Ceftazidime. Results obtained showed that MRSA was susceptible to Oxacillin with 39.6% and Cefoxitin with 44.4% from samples collected from Tran Amadi abattoir but showed intermediate resistance to isolates from Rumuodumaya and Iwofe abattoirs. The percentage occurrence of S. aureus was highest among the faecal samples with 58.3% while blood samples which is supposed to be sterile, was observed from this study to have staphylococcal counts of 1.4%. The multiple antibiotic sensitivity tests showed that S. aureus isolates were susceptible to Ofloxacin with 28mm as zones of inhibition; Gentamicin had 20mm and Ceftriaxone had 16mm while they were 100% resistant to Augmentin, Cefuroxime and Ceftazidime while erythromycin showed intermediate sensitivity. However, it was observed that out of the 144 Staphylococcus aureus isolates from the 3 sampling points, 22.2% were resistant to Cefoxitin while 26.4% were resistant to Oxacillin. This study suggests that different resistance genes may accumulate on a single mobile element, presenting a situation in which multiple antibiotic resistance can be acquired via a single genetic event. The versatility of bacterial populations in adapting to toxic environments, along with their facility in exchanging DNA, signifies that antibiotic resistance is an inevitable biological phenomenon that will likely continue to be a chronic medical problem.