ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE OF Salmonella enterica serovars typhi and paratyphi FROM BLOOD ISOLATES IN CHILDREN FROM A NORTH DELHI TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

Background: Salmonella typhi and paratyphi are mainly responsible for causing enteric fever in India. Widespread use of some common antimicrobial agents led to emergence of Salmonella strains with reduced susceptibility and multidrug resistance. Susceptibility pattern keep changing and vary from p lace to place with time. Methods: A retrospective study was carried out to evaluate Salmonella blood isolates in children < 15 years, in relation to specific serotype, age distribution and prevalent antimicrobial resistance pattern. Results: Salmonella typhi was most common serotype isolated, accounting for 89.2% of total isolates. None of Salmonella isolates were MDR and all were resistant to nalidixic acid. Ciprofloxacin resistance was found in 34.2% of isolates. Low leve l resistance was seen towards first line antimicrobials including ampicillin (7.2%), chloramphenicol (5.4%) and cotrimoxazole (2.7%). Conclusion: Emergence of antimic robial resistance in typhoidal Salmonellae constitutes a new challenge. Re-emergence of strains sensitive towards first line antimicrobial agents emphasizes concept of antibiotic recycling in hospitals. KeywordsMultidrug resistance (MDR), nalidixic acid resistant Salmonella typhi (NARST), enteric fever