Antibiotic Resistance Patterns of Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from Patients with Urinary Tract Infections in Isfahan

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common bacterial infections of human. Although, a variety of bacteria is known as the causative agents of UTIs, but Escherichia coli is the most common cause of infections in men and women. The aim of this study was to determine the antibiotic resistance patterns of uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) strains isolated from patients with urinary tract infections in a referral university hospital in Isfahan, Iran.
During 2015, a total of 254 E. coli isolates were collected from patients with UTI in Isfahan, Iran. All isolates were identified at the species level using conventional biochemical tests and PCR method using specific tufA primers. The susceptibility patterns of isolates to 17 antibiotics were determined using disc diffusion method by the guideline of Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI).
The results of biochemical and molecular methods were as the same. Antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed that, most of the isolates were resistant to cephalothin and ampicillin, respectively. Moreover, all of the isolates showed susceptibility to amikacin and resistance to meropenem, nitrofurantoin, cefoxitin and gentamicin was lower than other antibiotics tested.
PCR using specific primers is a specific, sensitive, accurate and rapid method that could be used for rapid identification of different bacteria in hospitals and laboratories. Moreover, in present study, amikacin, meropenem and nitrofurantoin were the most effective antibiotics against UPEC isolates.