Antibiotic resistant profile of Streptococcus pneumoniae from the nasopharynx.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae has compromised the effectiveness of therapy for pneumococcal diseases and asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriers play an important role in transmission of resistant strains. Method: Eighty-eight volunteer students attending 2 secondary schools in Jos, Nigeria were involved in this study to determine the antimicrobial resistant profile of Streptococcus pneumoniae isolated from the nasopharynx. The study population consisted of males and females between the ages of 15 – 25 years. Nasopharyngeal swab samples were analyzed for the presence of S. pneumoniae using standardbacteriological methods. The isolates were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing using the disc diffusion method. Results: S. pneumoniae was isolated from 37(42.04%) of the 88 samples. Isolates showed the highest resistance of 12 (32.43%) to erythromycin and lowest resistance of 4(10.81%) to ciprofloxacin. The resistance profiles for the 26(70.27%) penicillin-sensitive and 11(29.72%) penicillin-resistant isolateswere similar. Both exhibited varying degrees of resistance to several groups of antimicrobials. However, isolates found to be resistant to penicillin showed a higher degree of resistance to other antimicrobialagents. Conclusion: This study has shown that some secondary school students are carriers of multiple antibiotic-resistant S. pneumoniae

Epidemiological Significance of the Colonization of Streptococcus Agalactiae in the Anorectum and Endocervix of Non-Parturients in Jos, Nigeria

Knowledge of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) carriage and infections in Africa is very scanty but few cases have been reported in Nigeria in particular. Streptococcus agalactiae has been reported to cause infections and diseases in non-parturients and adults ranging from bacteremia, osteomylitis, arthritis, and endocarditis to breast abscess among others, hence the necessity for this study. Fifty six non-pregnant women of different age groups and social status were screened for GBS in Plateau State Specialist Hospital using the Christie, Atkins and Munch-Petersen (CAMP) and hippurate hydrolysis tests. Two (3.6 %) of the 56 women were positive for GBS. The 2 isolates were all from the anorectum. The endocervix yielded no culture. The antibiogram showed that ampicillin is the drug of choice with all isolates (100%) sensitive to the drug. No statistically significant relationship was observed between the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of the patients and GBS carriage (P>0.05). This survey shows a much lower carriage proportion than that reported in Ibadan, Nigeria from non-parturients.Key words: Streptococcus agalactiae, epidemiology, anorectum, endocervix, non-parturient

Pneumococcal carriage in sub-Saharan Africa--a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Pneumococcal epidemiology varies geographically and few data are available from the African continent. We assess pneumococcal carriage from studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa (sSA) before and after the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) era. METHODS: A search for pneumococcal carriage studies published before 2012 was conducted to describe carriage in sSA. The review also describes pneumococcal serotypes and assesses the impact of vaccination on carriage in this region. RESULTS: Fifty-seven studies were included in this review with the majority (40.3%) from South Africa. There was considerable variability in the prevalence of carriage between studies (I-squared statistic = 99%). Carriage was higher in children and decreased with increasing age, 63.2% (95% CI: 55.6-70.8) in children less than 5 years, 42.6% (95% CI: 29.9-55.4) in children 5-15 years and 28.0% (95% CI: 19.0-37.0) in adults older than 15 years. There was no difference in the prevalence of carriage between males and females in 9/11 studies. Serotypes 19F, 6B, 6A, 14 and 23F were the five most common isolates. A meta-analysis of four randomized trials of PCV vaccination in children aged 9-24 months showed that carriage of vaccine type (VT) serotypes decreased with PCV vaccination; however, overall carriage remained the same because of a concomitant increase in non-vaccine type (NVT) serotypes. CONCLUSION: Pneumococcal carriage is generally high in the African continent, particularly in young children. The five most common serotypes in sSA are among the top seven serotypes that cause invasive pneumococcal disease in children globally. These serotypes are covered by the two PCVs recommended for routine childhood immunization by the WHO. The distribution of serotypes found in the nasopharynx is altered by PCV vaccination

Heppurate hydrolysis and Christie, Atkins, Munch-Peterson tests epidemiological diagnostic tools for Streptococcus Agalactiae carriage in pregnancy

Objectives: To evaluate the Christie, Atkins, Munch-Peterson (CAMP) and hippurate hydrolysis reactions as diagnostic tools for Streptococcus agalactiae carriage in pregnancy.Design: Observational, analytical case-control study.Setting: Hospital-based study in a primary and a tertiary health care institution.Patients: One hundred and six pregnant and 56 non-pregnant (controls) women were included in the study. The participants were of different socio-economic status. A volunteer sample was used. About 800 subjects were contacted and 162 participated in the study.Results: The sensitivity of the screening test varied from 25% for the CAMP test to 77.78% for the hippurate hydrolysis reaction. The specificity was the same for both tests at (50%). A significant difference in positivity between the CAMP and hippurate hydrolysis reactions (95% confidence limit,

Vibrio Cholerae 01 Infections In Jos, Nigeria

A study to determine the prevalence of Vibrio cholerae 01 in stool sample submitted for routine examination of enteric pathogens, as well as identify the serotypes and antibiogram of the isolates to commonly used antibiotics was undertaken. The survey involved the examination of 774 (763 stool and 11 rectal swabs) specimens obtained from different patients seen at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH). Of the total number examined, 34 (4.39%) yielded Vibrio cholerae 01. All of them were Inaba serotype of El-Tor biotype. The age group 20-29 years had the highest rate, 21 (6.95%). Rectal swabs yielded a higher number of isolates, 9 (81.82%) from 11 specimens compared to 25 (3.28%) from 763 stool specimens. The organism is most prevalent during the mid-rainy season (June/July) since most of the isolates 29 (85.29%) of the 34 isolates were isolated during this period (P < 0.05). Isolates were very sensitive to ofloxacin, erythromycin and tetracycline but resistant to chloramphenicol, ampicillin, cloxacillin and penicillin G. This study demonstrates that Vibrio cholerae 01 is endemic in our environment. Afr. J. Clin. Exper. Microbiol. 2004; 5 (3): 260-26