Prevalence And Antimicrobial Susceptibility Of Bacteria In Urine Samples Of Students Of Michael Okpara University Of Agriculture Umudike, Umuahia, Abia State.

ABSTRACT

Bacteriuria is identified when urine specimens have at least 10⁵ cfulml of a uropathogen isolated in the absence of signs or symptoms of urinary infection. Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is defined as the microbial invasion of any of the tissues of the urinary tract extending from the renal cortex to the urethral meatus. Females are however believed to be more affected than males. This is due to the short and wider female urethra and its proximity to the anus. The most commonly isolated microorganism in bacterial UTI are the Gram negative bacilli including E. coil, Citrobacter spp., Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus spp., Kiebsiella spp. The Gram positive bacterial UTI are Enteroccocus spp and Staphiococcus spp. There are two major modes of bacterial entry into the genitourinary tract, ascending route and hematogenous route. To establish the diagnosis of bacteriuria, a urine specimen for culture is necessary. Treatment of UTI with the appropriate antibiotic can minimize mortality, morbidity and any renal damage from acute UTI. Antimicrobial resistance is as a result of overuse, misuse and in many cases abuse of drugs. The midstream portion of urine is then collected in plastic sterile, wide-mouthed container which should be covered with a tightly fitted lid. The media used for this study were MaConkey agar, Nutrient agar, Maueller Hinton Agar and Mannitol salt agar. The bacterial isolates were identified based on their colonial morphology, cultural characteristics, Gram stain reaction and biochemical tests. Antimicrobial sensitivity testing was performed. The result of this study revealed that Escherichia coli is the most prevalence bacteria with 41%. This study shows the necessity of obtaining sensitivity test reports before the start of antibiotic treatment in case of suspected urinary tract infection.