Antimicrobial suceptibility of V. cholerae in north west, Ethiopia

Various Vibrio cholerae serogroups cause cholera, which occurs as major epidemic disease in most developing countries. This study was aimed at determining the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of V. cholerae and its serotypes from cholera cases.

The study was undertaken during cholera epidemics in North West Ethiopia from August 2006 to September 2008. Diarrheic stool samples were processed per the standard microbiology procedures at Bahir Dar Regional Health Research Laboratory. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed using disc diffusion technique per Kirby-Bauer method.

Eighty one V. cholerae 01 serotype Inaba were isolated from stools of cholera cases. Antibiograms of V. cholerae 01 Inaba showed that 71.6% of isolates were resistant against two, 18.4% to three and 5% to four antibiotics. All V. cholerae Inaba isolates were resistant to co-trimoxazol 81 (100%). High levels of resistance were also shown to chloramphenicol 76 (94%) and ampicillin 72 (89%) with least resistance to erythromycin 12 (15%), tetracycline 5 (6.2) and ciprofloxacilin 1 (1.2%). However, all isolates remain susceptible to doxycycline 81 (100%).

In the study area, doxycycline or ciprofloxacilin could be used for treatment of adult cholera cases whereas erythromycin is alternative for young children. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests are strongly recommended for V. cholerae strains in treatment intervention during epidemics.