Antibiotic sensitivity pattern of Salmonella Typhi in paediatric population in a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To assess the sensitivity patterns of Salmonella Typhi in paediatric patients with typhoid fever at tertiary care hospitals in Rawalpindi. Study Design: Cross-Sectional study. Place and Duration: The study was conducted at the Departments of Paediatric Medicine at Watim General Hospital and Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi from August 2023 to January 2024. Methodology: Paediatric patients (n=150) diagnosed with enteric fever were included through purposive sampling. Sensitivity and resistance to first line (ciprofloxacin), second line (ceftriaxone) and third line antibiotics (azithromycin and meropenem) were evaluated. SPSS version-23.00 was used for data analysis. Descriptive and inferential statistics was applied. Results: The average age of patients was 6.7 ± 2.9 years, with 54% (n=81) males and 46% (n=69) females. The mean weight was 23 ± 7.8 kg, the mean duration of fever was 5.3 ± 1.1 days, and the mean fever at presentation was 101.3 ± 1.7°F. Only 34.7% (n=52) came from urban areas, 25.3% (n=38) from lower socioeconomic status, and merely 18.7% (n=28) reported boiling water before use. Salmonella Typhi was cultured in 68% (n=102) of cases, while Para typhi was found in 32% (n=48). Sensitivity analysis revealed that 61.3% of patients were sensitive to ciprofloxacin as first-line antibiotic, 76.7% to ceftriaxone as second-line, and 82% to azithromycin with 100 % sensitivity to meropenem as third-line antibiotic. Conclusion: High antibiotic resistance (lower sensitivity), particularly against first-line drug(Ciprofloxacin) was observed among patients with enteric fever, irrespective of age, gender, weight, water source, socioeconomic status, or residence. Further research on larger sample sizes is recommended to explore factors contributing to antibiotic resistance, aiming to mitigate the associated morbidity linked to enteric fever. Keywords: Antibiotic resistance, Enteric Fever, Paediatric, Salmonella Para typhi, Salmonella Typhi, Typhoid. How to Cite This: Jabeen B, Liaqat I, Zulfiqar S, Mumtaz N, Shabbir S. Antibiotic sensitivity pattern of Salmonella Typhi in paediatric population in a tertiary care hospital. Isra Med J. 2024; 16(2): 57-62. DOI: https://doi.org/10.55282/imj.oa1416