Antibacterial susceptibility profiles of Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates

Staphylococcus aureus is a major cause of hospital and community-acquired infections. Increasing resistance to commonly used antibacterial agents complicates treatment. This study assessed the antibacterial susceptibility profiles of S. aureus isolates from different clinical samples at Specialist Hospital Sokoto (SHS), Nigeria. A total of 86 clinical samples were collected and processed between April and September 2021 using standard microbiological techniques . S. aureus was identified phenotypically, and antibacterial susceptibility testing was performed using the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method in accordance with Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M100 (34th edition, 2024) guidelines. Data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from 19 of 86 samples (22.1%; 95% CI 13.3–30.9%). Wound swabs had the most isolates (6/86; 6.98%), followed by urine samples (4/86; 4.70%). The highest occurrence was in children aged 0–10 years (8/86; 9.3%). The isolates were most susceptible to ceftriaxone and streptomycin (12/19, 63.2% each) and most resistant to norfloxacin (17/19, 89.5%), cefuroxime (14/19, 73.7%), and amoxicillin (13/19, 68.4%). One isolate (1/19; 5.3%) had intermediate susceptibility to amoxicillin, ceftriaxone, and chloramphenicol. A moderate level of antibacterial resistance was observed among Staphylococcus aureus isolates in this hospital-based study, highlighting the importance of continuous local surveillance to support antimicrobial stewardship. However, the small sample size, single-center design, and absence of molecular resistance characterization limit the generalizability of the findings.