Abstract

Urinary tract infection is one of the most common bacterial infections with increasing resistance to antibiotics. Escherichia coli (E. coli) have been identified as the most common pathogen of urinary tract infections. Studies on prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of clinical isolates from urinary tract infections in Nigeria are few. This study was carried out to assess the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of E. coli isolates from urinary tract infections in two health institutions - a general hospital and a private clinic in South South, Nigeria. A retrospective study was carried out between January 2005 and December 2009. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 14, Chicago IL. E. coli accounted for 1797 out of 3655 urine isolates (49.16%). Lowest susceptibility was for cotrimoxazole (13.9%), chloramphenicol (16.3%) and amoxicillin (16.8%) while highest susceptibility was for ofloxacin (65.1%) and ciprofloxacin (50%). There was a significant difference, p<0.05, in prevalence and susceptibility patterns between the two institutions with higher susceptibility levels in the general hospital. There is a need for proper surveillance and development of hospital specific antibiograms to inform appropriate empiric therapy of urinary tract infections.

Key words: Escherichia coli, urinary tract infections, antimicrobial susceptibility, Nigeria.