Resistance to antimicrobial drugs in Ghana

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial drug resistance is a global issue that affects health, economic, and social development. The problem has been attributed to misuse of antimicrobial agents. PURPOSE: To identify the agents of bacterial infection in Ghana, determine their antibiogram, and the possibility of setting up a surveillance program. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A prospective quantitative study set in various hospitals including two teaching hospitals, seven regional hospitals, and two district hospitals in Ghana. A total of 5099 bacterial isolates from various clinical specimens were collected over a period of 1 year, including data related to the patients. Susceptibility of the isolates was determined by the Kirby–Bauer method. In addition, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of multidrug-resistant isolates of epidemiological significance was also determined using the E-test. RESULTS: A wide range of bacterial isolates were identified in both teaching and regional hospitals. High percentage of resistance was observed for tetracycline (82%), cotrimoxazole (73%), ampicillin (76%), and chloramphenicol (75%). Multidrug resistance was observed to a combination of ampicillin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, and cotrimoxazole. On the other hand, a lower percentage of resistance was observed for ceftriaxone (6.3%), ciprofloxacin (11%), and amikacin (9.9%). CONCLUSION: Generally, the prevalence of multidrug resistance was widespread among the various isolates. Some multidrug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, and non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS) had high MIC to cefuroxime (>256), gentamicin (>256), and ciprofloxacin (>32).