Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance Profile of Salmonella Isolated from Chicken Eggs Purchased from Open Markets in Afar Region, Ethiopia

A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to May 2020 with the objectives of estimating the prevalence of Salmonella isolates from chicken eggs purchased at the open markets of Asayita and Dubti towns in the Afar region of Ethiopia and evaluating their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns. A total of 384 chicken egg samples were purchased using a simple random sampling method from the local open markets of Dubti and Asayita towns. A swab technique was used to sample the shell surface of the intact eggs. The egg contents were homogenized in stomacher bags containing 225 mL of buffered peptone water. Descriptive statistics were employed to analyze the data. Out of the 384 eggs purchased, 68 (17.70%) samples from the eggshell were found to be positive for Salmonella, and 26 (6.77%) samples were found to be positive from the internal egg contents. The overall prevalence of Salmonella in eggshells was significantly higher than that of Salmonella from the egg contents. Of the 26 Salmonella isolates subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility tests, 12 (46.2%) were found to be resistant to one or more antimicrobials, 8 (30.8%) isolates showed intermediate sensitivity to one or more antimicrobials, and 6 (23.1%) isolates were susceptible to all tested antimicrobials. Among the isolates tested, 34.6%, 23.1%, and 11.5% of the Salmonella isolates were found to be relatively resistant to tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim, and ampicillin, respectively. The present study findings revealed the presence of Salmonella species both from eggshells and egg contents. Further studies should be conducted to identify the Salmonella species involved, which is crucial for recommending appropriate antibiotic therapy in suspected Salmonella cases.