Aim: Typhoid fever is a preventable and treatable enteric disease which can be effectively treated when adequately diagnosed and right antibiotic choice made. It is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in 10-18% of affected children aged 0-5 years. The aim of this work was to determine the antibiotic susceptibility pattern of clinical isolates of Salmonella typhi associated with septicaemia among children aged 0-5 years in Kano.

Methods: One hundred and eighty (180) of the isolates were randomly selected from four hospitals in Kano metropolis. The samples were analyzed for in vitro sensitivity pattern by disk diffusion technique.

Results: This study showed that cefriaxone and cefotaxime were the most sensitive (?90), ciprofloxacin was of intermediate sensitivity while more than 50% were resistant to chloramphenicol and trimethoprim/sulphamethoxazole. Eight (4.44%) multi drug resistant (MDR) S. typhi were detected and screened for Extended Spectrum β-Lactamase (ESBL) by double disk synergistic test using amoxicillin clavulanate, whereby 2 (25%) were positive while all the multidrug resistant (MDR) including the ESBL positive were sensitive to meropenem.

Conclusion: Blood culture is a useful method for effective diagnosis of Salmonella typhi infection.

 

Key Words: Susceptibility, Isolates, Salmonella typhi, Septicaemia