Objective: In this study, it was aimed to identify anaerobic bacteria isolated from various clinical samples, and to determine their antibiotic resistance by gradient method (E-test).
Methods: The study was carried out between January 15 and November 1, 2021. The 213 of 863 samples were included in the study. Anaerobic strains were isolated by conventional methods and identified by an automated system. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by the gradient method according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) criteria.
Results: Anaerobic bacteria were detected in 10.3% of the samples, aerobic/facultative anaerobic bacteria were detected in 34.8%, while growth was not observed in 54.9% of the samples. The 77% of the samples were abscess. The 72.7% of anaerobic bacteria were Gram positive bacteria, and 27.3% were Gram negative bacteria. The most common species were; Cutibacterium (22.7%), Actinomyces (18.3%), Prevotella (13.7%), Bacteroides (9.1%), Anaerococcus (9.1%), Clostridium species (9.1%). The antibiotic susceptibilities of all anaerobic bacteria were as following; moxifloxacin (95.5%), piperacillin-tazobactam (95.5%), amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (95.5%), cefoxitin (90.9%), meropenem (90.9%), clindamycin (77.3%), ampicillin (59.1%), and metronidazole (22.7%), respectively. The susceptibility rates of gram positive bacilli were 91.7% for ampicillin, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, piperacillin-tazobactam, cefoxitin, moxifloxacin, meropenem, and 75% for clindamycin. In Gram positive cocci, susceptibility to ampicillin was 50%, susceptibility to amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, piperacillin-tazobactam, cefoxitin, clindamycin, moxifloxacin were 100%, and to meropenem was 75%. The susceptibility rates for Gram-negative bacilli were 0.0% for ampicillin, 100% for amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, piperacillin-tazobactam, moxifloxacin, meropenem, 83.3% for metronidazole, 66.7% for cefoxitin, and 50% for clindamycin.
Conclusion: In our study, it was observed that the sensitivity rates for especially, metronidazole and ampicillin were low among anaerobic bacteria. The resistance profile of many anaerobic bacteria has changed significantly over the past decade, making the antimicrobial susceptibility of anaerobic bacteria unpredictable. For this reason, revealing and documenting local data on this subject at regular intervals will constitute an important reference for both empirical treatment, public health, and surveillance studies.