Prevalence of Asymptomatic Bacteriuria, Associated Factors and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile of Bacteria Among Pregnant Women Attending Saint Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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 Saint Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Clean-catch midstream urine specimens were collected using sterile containers and cultured on MacConkey agar and sheep blood agar to isolate bacteria. Socio-demographic and obstetric data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 22. The association between ASB and risk factors was assessed using logistic regressions. A p-value ≤0.05 was considered as a cut point to determine the significant association. RESULTS: From 290 study participants, 16.9% with 95 CI [13.1, 21.5] were positive for ASB. The predominant bacteria were Escherichia coli (43%) and Staphylococcus aureus (20%). Majority of E. coli (91.0%) were susceptible to nitrofurantoin and gentamycin; most of them were resistant to amoxicillin (86.4%) and cotrimoxazole (77.7%). The proportion of multi-drug resistance (MDR) isolates was 57.1%. Previous infection with UTI, previous history of catheterization, and natural abortion were significantly associated with ASB. CONCLUSION: In the study area, ASB is prevalent in the study area indicating the importance of screening of ASB and possible treatment to prevent its consequences.