Drug Susceptibility Pattern and Associated Factors of Bacteria Isolated from Urinary Tract Infection among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Care in Teaching Referral Hospital, Southeast Ethiopia

Background: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is caused by bacteria from the digestive tract which climbs the opening of the urethra and begins to multiply to cause infection. UTI in pregnancy is associated with significant morbidity for both mother and baby. In most developing countries including Ethiopia, screening for UTI in pregnancy is not considered an essential part of Antenatal Care. This study aimed to assess the bacterial profile and antibiotic susceptibility pattern and associated risk factors among pregnant women in Madda Walabu University Goba Referral Hospital, Southeast Ethiopia. Methods: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from June-August, 2020 . A total of 234 pregnant women were enrolled; data were collected using a structured questionnaire by a trained interviewer. Urine samples were collected from all pregnant women and culture on cysteine lysine electrolytes deficiency medium. Data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0. Descriptive statistics were used to explain the study participants with relevant variables. Logistic regression was used for data comparison. P-value <0.05 was accepted as statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of UTI was 23.9% among both asymptomatic and symptomatic groups. Of this screened midstream urine samples showed that 16% and 32.2%, had significant bacteriuria in the asymptomatic and symptomatic groups respectively. The prevalence of UTI was significantly associated with previous history of catheterization and urinary tract infection (p<0.05). E. coli was the most frequently isolated organism (42.9%) followed by coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (26.8%), and S. aureus (12.5%). Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria accounted for (59%) and (41%) respectively. Gram-negative isolates showed resistance to ampicillin, naldixic acid and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. Also, all Gram-negative bacterial isolates revealed a high level of resistance against trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. Conclusion: Significant bacteriuria has been observed from both symptomatic and asymptomatic pregnant women. The majority of the isolates were resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics. This calls for an early screening of all pregnant women for UTI and those found to be infected need treatment with an appropriate drug to avoid complications.