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Abstract

Poultry products are a major source of animal protein in Ghana. However, disease outbreaks have constantly threatened increased poultry production in some regions of the country. The most common source of human salmonellosis is food of poultry origin. The evolution of resistant strains of Salmonella in natural environments and animal houses presents a serious public health concern. Fluoroquinolones such as ciprofloxacin have remained effective agents in managing salmonellosis and other gastrointestinal infections over the years. However, despite growing evidence on evolving antibiotic resistance in S. typhi, few studies have assessed the susceptibility of salmonella species to commercially marketed ciprofloxacin brands. This study thus sought to determine the susceptibility of S. typhi isolated from 25 poultry farms in the Ashanti region to commercially available ciprofloxacin brands on the Ghanaian market. Antibiotic susceptibility tests were carried out using a modified Kirby Bauer disk diffusion assay and MIC determination by micro-broth dilution. Of the 50 Salmonella typhi isolates, 20% (n=10/50) were susceptible to pure ciprofloxacin, while 58% (29/50) of the isolates were resistant. Salmonella typhi isolated from poultry farm workers showed 12-40% susceptibility to all the brands of ciprofloxacin tested, but resistance ranged from 20-36%. Eighty-four (84) to 88% of the isolates from poultry litter were resistant, with only 8-16% of the isolates showing susceptibility to the commercially available brands of ciprofloxacin tested. Findings from this study indicate the need to also focus antibiotic resistance surveillance efforts on animal husbandry. This will enhance the identification of evolving antimicrobial-resistant strains and avoid irrational antimicrobial use in animal production.