Abstract

Purulent materials were collected aseptically with the aid of sterile swab sticks from Forty (40) patients with automobile accident wounds at University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) and James Accident and Bone Victim Hospital (JABH) in Uyo. These samples were examined microbiologically for the presence of aerobic bacteria and the susceptibility of these organisms to different conventional antibiotics was assessed using Kirby Bauer disc diffusion technique. A total of Seventy-four (74) bacterial isolates were obtained from the wound cultures. A single etiological agent was identified in 13 (32.5%) samples while multiple agents were found in 26 (65%), but no bacterial isolate was obtained in one case. Staphylococcus aureus was the predominant microorganism (37.8%) followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa(27.0%), Escherichia coli (14.9%), Streptococcus pyogenes (12.2%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (8.11%). Automobile accident wound infection was most prevalent in the age group of 21 - 40 and less prevalent in the age group 61 and above. Automobile accident infection was more prevalent (71.6%) in males than in females (28.4%).The results of the antibiotics susceptibility showed that most of the isolates were highly resistant to penicillin (80.4%), streptomycin (67%) and gentamycin (71.6%), and moderately sensitive to augmentin (46.2%), and nalidixic acid (56.8%), but highly sensitive to ofloxacin (81.6%), ciprofloxacin (75.8%) and pefloxacin (81%). The findings of this study showed that ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin and pefloxacin may be drugs of choice for the treatment of automobile accident wound infection, while penicillin, streptomycin and gentamycin may not be used unless culture and sensitivity tests are done.

Key words: Prevalence, susceptibility, automobile, wound, bacteriology, Uyo.