Phenotypic Characterisation of Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Patients in Healthcare Institutions in Zaria Metropolis, Kaduna State, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcus aureus is a cosmopolitan and pathogenic microorganism associated with various diseases spectra and antimicrobial resistance of public health importance.Aim: This study determined the phenotypic characteristics of S. aureus isolated from patients in healthcare institutions in Zaria metropolis.STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional hospital-based study was carried out in 5 healthcare institutions. Four hundred and twenty clinical samples were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Majority of the patients (54.3%) were within the age range 21­40 years and mean age of 26.04 ± 12 years. Approximately, 70% of the respondents had history of antibiotic use prior to consultation in the hospitals and wereselfprescribed, and 91.2% were outpatients. The most commonly abused antibiotics were ampicillin-cloxacillin (19.5%) and cotrimoxazole (10.0%), and the mean duration of their use was 3.5 ± 1.3 days. The detection rate for S. aureus was 10% and 5.2% for MRSA. The S. aureus isolates showed the highest frequency of resistance against ampicillin 42 (100%), followed by penicillin G 39 (92.9%) and least was to gentamicin 5 (11.9%). The frequency of resistance for the MRSA were ampicillin 22 (100%), penicillin G 21(95.5%) and least was to gentamicin 2 (9.1%). The minimum inhibitory concentrations of oxacillin were greater than 128 µg /ml. CONCLUSION: The detection rate of S. aureus and MRSA strains are of great public health concern which requires continuous health education on rational use of antibiotics among others

Comparison of a DNA based PCR Method with Conventional Methods for the Detection of M. Tuberculosis in Jos; Nigeria

Background: To achieve early diagnosis and effective treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis; simple and sensitive methods that enhance the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) from clinical specimens are needed. This study compared the effectiveness and suitability of an insertion sequence (IS 6110) based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay with conventional methods for the detection of M. tuberculosis from clinical specimens in a resource-limited setting. Methods: Sputa from 101 HIV-positive patients and 40 clinical specimens (sputa; gastic wash out; ascitic fluid; pleural fluid and cerebrospinal fluid) collected from children (HIV status unknown); all suspected for pulmonary tuberculosis at the Jos University Teaching Hospital; Jos; (JUTH) Nigeria; were examined by Ziehl Neelsen (ZN) smear microscopy; Lowenstein Jensen's (LJ) egg-based culture; and PCR methods for the detection of M. tuberculosis Results: Mycobacteria was detected in 45/101 (44.6) of the specimens from the HIV-positive patients and comprised of 6ZN+culture+PCR+; 4ZN-culture+ PCR-; 16ZN-culture+ PCR+ and 19ZN-culture-PCR+. Twenty-two of forty (55) children were positive with 0smear microscopy; 4/40 (10) culture+PCR+; and 18/40 (45) culture- PCR+. The sensitivity and specificity of the PCR for the HIV-positive patients were 85and 74respectively against 23and 100for ZN smear microscopy. Conclusion: The IS6110 PCR is a rapid and sensitive method that is specific for the M. tuberculosis complex group. It is simple in our experience and increased the detection of M. tuberculosis from the specimens examined. We suggest its use for the detection of M. tuberculosis in high TB and HIV burden areas