Evaluation of Susceptibility Profiles of Some Bacteria to Flouroquinolones in Kano Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

Resistance to broad-spectrum antibiotics such as fluoroquinolones by bacteria is becoming a major threat towards the chemotherapy of some common pathogenic bacterial infections in the world, especially in developing nations. In view of that, susceptibility profiles of some pathogenic bacteria to some fluoroquinolones were evaluated using the modified Kirby-Bauer Disc Diffusion Technique. Four fluoroquinolone antibiotics; ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin (second generation), levofloxacin (third generation), and moxifloxacin (fourth generation) were tested on five bacterial species (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, and Klebsiella pneumoniae) sourced from Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Nigeria, and re-confirmed at the Microbiology Laboratory in Bayero University, Kano. The results of the study revealed that 8 (26.7%) of E. faecalis isolates were sensitive to levofloxacin, 6 (20.0%) were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, and 1 (3.33%) was sensitive to ofloxacin, while 0 (0.00%) was sensitive to moxifloxacin. Seven isolates (23.3%) of S. aureus were sensitive to levofloxacin, 15 (50.0%) were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, and 4 (13.3%) were sensitive to ofloxacin, while none (0.00%) were sensitive to moxifloxacin. E. coli isolates were 96.6% resistant to levofloxacin, while Klebsiella pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa isolates exhibited 76.6% and 50.0% resistance to the antibiotic, respectively. There was a significant difference in the performance of the four antibiotics used, with ciprofloxacin performing better than others (p-value 0.00604). There was no significant difference in the percentages of sensitive bacterial species to the antibiotics used in the research (p-value 0.614); however, P. aeruginosa showed a relatively higher number of sensitive isolates, 30 (40%). It can be concluded that 58% of the isolates were moderately sensitive to all the antibiotics in this study.