In-vitro antibiotic sensitivity pattern of Salmonella typhi

Introduction: Salmonella typhi is widely prevalent in India and it causes endemic and epidemic typhoid fever. Early and proper antibiotic administration is necessary to reduce morbidity, complication and mortality of typhoid. Material and methods: A total of 1006 febrile patients, receiving treatment at Guru Govindsingh Hospital, Jamnagar, were included in this study. 1006 blood culture samples for S. typhi were collected from these patients. Blood cultures were tested for clinical bacteriology, as per standard protocol. Results: 30 blood cultures grew positive for S. typhi with the isolation rate of 2.98%. 60% S. typhi isolates were resistant to chloramphenical, ampicillin, and co-trimoxazole and hence, were multidrug resistant S. typhi. Ciprofloxacin was the most effective drug with 93.33 % sensitivity. Conclusion: Ciprofloxacin remains the drug of choice for treatment of typhoid fever. Unchecked use of ciprofloxacin antibiotic should be rationalized, since selection pressure has now emerged as ciprofloxacin resistance in S. typhi.