Muhammad Ahmed Abdullah, Adnan Zahid, Nargis Yousaf Sattar.
Susceptibility of salmonella enterica serotype typhi, to the usual line of antimicrobial treatment in rawalpindi.
Pak J Public Health Jan ;3(2):14-8.

Introduction: Enteric Fever is a global public health problem, with annual death rates of around 600,000. The bacterial infection with serious implications largely affects poor populations in the developing world. Modern medicine has developed an effective arsenal against most infectious diseases during the last century , however the casual use of antimicrobial agents in many developing countries, has rendered them useless. The present study purports to look into the issue of antimicrobial resistance against S. typhi. Methods: This study is a Cross-sectional study conducted in a total of 150 consenting participants presenting at DHQ teaching hospital Rawalpindi, over a period of 6 months (November 2012 to May 2013), through non-random consecutive sampling technique. Blood cultures were taken from the 96 participants who had tested positive for S. typhi infection. The results of these blood culture reports have been discussed with a special focus on the various anti-microbial drugs being currently used. Results: Out of the 150 study participants 62.5% were men and the remaining were women, mean age of the respondents was almost 33 years, approximately 40% were uneducated and around half were from urban Rawalpindi. The rst line agents including Ampicillin, Chloramphenicol and Co-trimoxazole showed resistance in more than 75% of cases, while strikingly Flouroquinolones including Ciprofloxacin, Levofloxacin and Ofloxacin showed around 80-90% resistance. All the organisms were sensitive to Ceftriaxone and Ceflxime. Conclusion: Anti-microbial resistance is a global health issue with regards to many infectious diseases. Enteric fever has been treated with various remedial strategies over the years ranging from spiritual healing and water from various shrines to antibiotics and surgical correction of complications. Owing to various reasons including the prescribing practices of our physicians, this ticking time bomb of antimicrobial resistance is influencing the lives of many people. Robust regulatory strategies and educational interventions are the need of the day , but the most important thing in this regard is the motivation and good intent of the people responsible for treating and preventing infectious diseases. (Pak J Public Health 2013; 3(2): 14-18)

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