Abstract:
Background: Gynecological infections and urinary tract infections (UTIs) pose significant health risks for women worldwide, often leading to mortality. The escalating prevalence of Escherichia-coli and its associated antibiotic resistance in gynecological infections highlight the global concern of antibiotic resistance, which hampers effective treatment. Objective: This study aimed to characterize Escherichia coli strains isolated from gynecological patients and analyze their drug resistance profiles. Methods: High vaginal swabs (HVS) were collected from female patients at Liaqat Hospital in Kohat to obtain samples for bacterial culture. The specimens were cultured on MacConkey Agar and Blood Agar media and incubated at 37°C for 24-48 hours. The identification of isolates was performed through biochemical tests, Gram staining, and subsequent pure culture for pathogenic bacterial growth. A total of 80 bacterial isolates were obtained from 100 females provisionally diagnosed with gynecological infections. Results: The highest incidence of bacterial infection was observed in the age group of 26-36 years. Among the isolated bacteria, Escherichia coli accounted for the majority (41.6%), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (15.4%) and coagulase-negative Staphylococci (12.2%). Escherichia coli exhibited the highest susceptibility to meropenem (98.2%) and imipenem (97.7%), while demonstrating the lowest susceptibility to amoxicillin (9.8%) and ampicillin (9.6%). High resistance levels were observed for cefoperazone, sulphamethoxazole, and cefuroxime, respectively. Approximately 3.27% of patients experienced recurrent infections. Conclusions: Sulphamethoxazole (81.4%) and amoxicillin (80.2%) showed the maximum resistance among the tested antibiotics. To mitigate antibiotic resistance and enhance the management of gynecological infections in Pakistani women, it is crucial to determine the causative strain and employ susceptible antibiotics accordingly.
Page(s):
72-72
DOI:
DOI not available
Published:
Journal: Abstract Book on International Conference on Food and Applied Sciences (ICFAS-23) 3-5 August 23, Volume: 0, Issue: 0, Year: 2023
Keywords:
UTI
,
Antimicrobial resistance
,
Antibacterial susceptibility
,
Gynecological infections
,
Drug resistance profiles