Predictive signs and symptoms of bacterial meningitis isolates in Northern Ghana.

Cerebrospinal meningitis (CSM) is a public health burden in Ghana that causes up to 10% mortality in confirmed cases annually. About 20% of those who survive the infection suffer permanent sequelae. The study sought to understand the predictive signs and symptoms of bacterial meningitis implicated in its outcomes. Retrospective data from the Public Health Division, Ghana Health Service on bacterial meningitis from 2015 to 2019 was used for this study. A pre-tested data extraction form was used to collect patients' information from case-based forms kept at the Disease Control Unit from 2015 to 2019. Data were transcribed from the case-based forms into a pre-designed Microsoft Excel template. The data was cleaned and imported into SPSS version 26 for analysis. Between 2015 and 2019, a total of 2446 suspected bacterial meningitis cases were included in the study. Out of these, 842 (34.4%) were confirmed. Among the confirmed cases, males constituted majority with 55.3% of the cases. Children below 14 years of age were most affected (51.4%). The pathogens commonly responsible for bacterial meningitis were Neisseria meningitidis (43.7%) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (53.0%) with their respective strains Nm W135 (36.7%), Nm X (5.1%), Spn St. 1 (26.2%), and Spn St. 12F/12A/12B/44/4 (5.3%) accounting for more than 70.0% of the confirmed cases. The presence of neck stiffness (AOR = 1.244; C.I 1.026-1.508), convulsion (AOR = 1.338; C.I 1.083-1.652), altered consciousness (AOR = 1.516; C.I 1.225-1.876), and abdominal pains (AOR = 1.404; C.I 1.011-1.949) or any of these signs and symptoms poses a higher risk for testing positive for bacterial meningitis adjusting for age. Patients presenting one and/or more of these signs and symptoms (neck stiffness, convulsion, altered consciousness, and abdominal pain) have a higher risk of testing positive for bacterial meningitis after statistically adjusting for age.

Carriage of Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria and Associated Factors Among Food Handlers in Tamale Metropolis, Ghana: Implications for Food Safety.

Background: Bacteria pathogens constitute a significant proportion of diarrhoea-causing food contaminants. Transmission of antibiotic resistant foodborne pathogens to humans is a major threat to food safety, especially in developing countries where quality hygiene and sanitation facilities are lacking. Factors related to antibiotic use, sanitation and hand hygiene have been associated with the spread of infectious diseases as well as antibiotic resistant bacteria. Proper food handling ensures that food is not contaminated with potential pathogenic bacteria. This study assessed the carriage of antibiotic resistant bacteria and associated factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among food handlers who sell ready to eat food in the Tamale metropolis of the Northern Region of Ghana. Food vending stations with huge customer base were randomly selected and the food handlers recruited using written informed consent. Structured questionnaires were used to collect participants sociodemographic details and information on sanitation, hand hygiene practice and antibiotic use. Sterile cotton swabs soaked in phosphate buffered saline was used to swab the palms of participating food handlers for bacteria isolation. All identified bacteria were tested for susceptibility to 12 antibiotics. Results: In all, 406 food handlers participated in this study, the mean (SD) age was 26.5 (2.64) years. Bacteria isolated were predominantly Staphylococci 60 (14.8%) and Escherichia coli 54 (13.3%). All the isolates were resistant to at least one antibiotic tested. The isolates showed high resistance to broad-spectrum antibiotics such as ampicillin (40.0%-75.0%), tetracycline (40.0%-80.0%), amoxiclav (20.0%-80.0%) and chloramphenicol (7.7%-50.0%). Logistic regression model revealed that the carriage of antibiotic resistant bacteria by food handlers was significantly associated with age, educational level, years on the job, training in food preparation, hygiene practice, water source, type of toilet facility used and antibiotic use. Conclusion: Street food handlers could be potential sources of food-borne transmission of antibiotic resistant bacteria.