ANTI-MICROBIAL RESISTANCE IN AGENTS CAUSING URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS

Background: Urinary Tract Infections are usually treated with empirical therapy by physicians based on previous knowledge of predictability of causative agents and their antimicrobial susceptibilities. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of various pathogens causing urinary tract infections and their antimicrobial susceptibility in patients presenting in out-patient department of a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in Out-Patient department of Urology of Benazir Bhutto Hospital during a period of 6 months from January 2017 to June 2017 after ethical approval from institutional research forum of Rawalpindi Medical University. 1000 patients (12 years old or above) that were clinically suspected for urinary tract infections were included in this study. Patients with co-morbidities like diabetes mellitus, renal pathologies, Immunodeficiency disorders, malignancies and congenital urogenital disorders were also excluded. Recipients of corticosteroid therapy or with a history of intake of broad spectrum antibiotics in previous 15 days were also excluded. Modified Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method was used for determining the antimicrobial resistance against various antimicrobials. Results: A total of 530 (53%) isolates were found to be culture positive for E.coli(77.4%), Klebsiella (6.4%), Enterobacter (6.0%), Pseudomonas (3.8%), Staphylococcus saprophyticus (3.4%), Citrobacter (1.1%) and Morganella (0.4%). Antimicrobial resistance against commonly used antimicrobials was alarmingly high. Conclusion: Surveillance of trends of antimicrobial susceptibility pattern is highly important. Keywords: Urinary Tract Infections, UTI, Agents, Anti-microbial susceptibility