Isolation of Proteus mirabilis from Clinical Urogenital Specimens: A Study of the Antibiotic Susceptibility Patterns of 392 Consecutively Isolated Strains in Jos, Nigeria.

Abstract

This retrospective study was designed to ascertain the epidemiological sources and antibiotic susceptibility patterns of Proteus mirabilis strains recovered from urogenital specimens in Jos University Teaching Hospital; (JUTH) over a five year period (Janurary 2000 – December 2004). Information on epidemiological and clinical sources of P. mirabilis strains, their antibiogram profiles and the demographic data of infected subjects were obtained from the Microbiology and Records Departments. Results were analyzed by Epi Info 2002 statistical software, P values <0.05 were considered significant. Of the 34,479 urogenital samples processed over the period, 23,479, 8,443 and 2,160 were urines, endocervical swabs and seminal fluids respectively. A total of 392 strains of P. mirabilis were recovered from these samples; 341 (87%) were from urines, 35 (9.0%) from endocervical swabs, and 16 (4%) were from seminal fluids (P<0.05). Thirteen strains were recovered from extra-genital specimens. The rate of recovery from females (68.9%) was higher than from males (31.1%) (P<0.05). Strains from hospital-acquired infections were more than those from community-acquired infections. Likewise, P. mirabilis strains recovered from hospital-acquired infections were more resistant than community-acquired ones to antimicrobials; Ofloxacin, ceftriaxone and amoxicillin-clavulanate were the most effective. The study has confirmed the significance of P. mirabilis involvement in hospital acquired urogenital
infections and the widespread resistance of P. mirabilis strains to most antimicrobials in clinical use. This study recommends proper use of antiseptics, disinfectants and sterilization procedures in order to reduce the spread of resistant bacteria in the hospital environment.