Incidence Rate and Antibiotic Susceptibility Pattern of Listeria Species in High Risk Groups

摘要

Introduction: Listeriosis, a bacterial food borne disease caused by Listeria spp. leads to mild food poisoning in the healthy individuals and severe systemic disease in immuno-compromised patients, pregnant women and extremes of age. Listeriosis in India largely remains ignored, even though there is an increase in the prevalence worldwide.Aim: To determine the incidence rate of Listeria spp. in clinical samples collected from various immuno-compromised individuals and to study its antibiotic susceptibility pattern.Materials and Methods: Total 643 clinical samples from high-risk group individuals were tested for Listeria spp. using standard culture and identification methods.Results: The overall incidence rate of Listeriosis in high risk individuals was 4.98%. The incidence rate in pregnant women and women with bad obstetric history was found to be 11.04%. Listeria spp. was found in 10.2 % of gastroenteritis cases, which is one of the major concerns in high risk groups. Increased resistance to clindamycin 68.8%, followed by penicillin G 37.5%, erythromycin 31.3% and ampicillin 25 % was found.Conclusion: In view of the high incidence rate of Listeriosis in our setting, it should be considered as a differential diagnosis in the high risk groups and diagnostic capability for the pathogen needs to be strengthened. Furthermore, increased antibiotic resistance is a cause for concern and the trends need to be monitored.