Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profiles of Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli Strains Isolated in Children Below Five Years and Food Animals Kisumu County, Kenya

Abstract

Background: Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) are the major cause of diarrhoea in children in developing and undeveloped countries. Domestic food animals act as reservoirs of DEC that are transmitted to children below five years through inadequate hygiene practices. Aim: To determine the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of DEC strains isolated from children below five years and food animals in Kisumu County. Methods: A total of 250 samples, were collected and analyzed using polymerase chain reaction. The antimicrobial susceptibility was determined using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Results: Enteroaggregative E.coli (12%), Enteropathogenic E.coli (5%), Enterotoxigenic E.coli (3%) and mixed infections (3%) respectively. From the DEC children sample isolates, antimicrobial agents showed 84.6% sensitivity towards Meropenem followed by Gentamicin (80.8%) and then Nalidixic acid (73.1%). High resistance was recorded among the Tetracycline and Sulfamethoxazole antibiotics. Of the 26 DEC children sample isolates, 24(92%) exhibited multidrug resistance patterns: 46% showed resistance to four different antibiotics, 38% to five different antibiotics and 4% to six different antibiotics. Animal samples showed 100% susceptibility to most antibiotics, with only two isolates showing multidrug resistance to five antibiotics and one showing resistance to four and three antibiotics, respectively. The multidrug index value for the DEC pathotypes isolated in children was 0.5, indicating a high risk of DEC transmission.