Prevalence and Antibiotic Susceptibility Profile of Salmonella Isolates among Diarrhoeal Patients Visiting Dessie Referral Hospital, North East Ethiopia

Salmonellosis, a disease caused by Salmonella, remains an important public health problem worldwide, particularly in the developing countries. A cross sectional descriptive survey study was conducted to determine the prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility profile of Salmonella species among diarrhoeal patients who were visiting Dessie Referral Hospital (DRH), Dessie, North East Ethiopia from November 2016 - January 2017. A total of 384 stool samples were collected using sterile stool cups. Out of these 20 (5.21%) were found to be positive for Salmonella species. The distribution of positive samples among the three age groups indicated that Salmonella species were predominantly prevalent in the age group 0.25 (three months) to 4 year’s old patients. Abdominal pain, vomiting, watery consistency of stool and 1 to 5 days of diarrhea were the clinical features that were significantly associated with salmonellosis. Consumption of raw vegetables and fruits, consumption of street vended foods, cohabitation of animals, use of water from unprotected source, absence of latrine and consumption of raw products of animals such as eggs and raw milk were the risk factors that were significantly associated with prevalence of Salmonella species. Antibiotic sensitivity test was performed for the isolated Salmonella species against 5 currently recommended antibiotics. The antimicrobial sensitivity study carried out using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method showed that 100% and 80% of the Salmonella isolates were sensitive to Ciprofloxacin and Nalidic acid respectively. Of the 20 Salmonella isolates, 100%, 85% and 80% were resistant to Ampicillin, Tetracycline and Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, respectively. This study indicated that Salmonella species were prevalent among diarrheal patients who were visiting DRH and should, therefore, be considered routinely in the diagnosis of patients with diarrhea cases. The physicians should also prescribe the appropriate drugs either after sensitivity testing or referring to updated information on local antibiotic sensitivity patterns.