Antibiotic resistance in pathogenic Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates in Turkey

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Streptococcus pneumoniae causes significant human infections globally.
• Increasing antibiotic resistance in S. pneumoniae is a growing public health concern.
• Early studies in Turkey documented pneumococcal antibiotic resistance in the late 1980s.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the trends and patterns of Streptococcus pneumoniae antibiotic resistance in Turkey.
• To assess the susceptibility of S. pneumoniae isolates to various antibiotics based on Turkish studies.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of Turkish studies on Streptococcus pneumoniae antibiotic resistance.
• Analysis of reported resistance rates for different antibiotic classes.

Main Results:

• By 2005, approximately 40% of pneumococci in Turkey were penicillin-resistant, with high-level resistance in one-fifth of cases.
• Ceftriaxone showed no reported resistance, while cefuroxime had resistance rates of 10.8-20%.
• Resistance rates for erythromycin, chloramphenicol, clindamycin, and tetracycline varied (4-28.6%), with over 50% nonsusceptibility to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole.

Conclusions:

• Penicillin is still suitable for non-meningeal infections despite resistance.
• Tetracycline should be used cautiously due to significant resistance.
• Rifampicin, quinolones, linezolid, quinupristin-dalfopristin, and telithromycin remain effective against S. pneumoniae in Turkey.