Prevalence of Asymptomatic Bacteriuria in a Sub-population of Tertiary Female Students: Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns and Group-specific Risk Factors

Abstract

Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) is a major risk factor for urinary tract infections in most-at-risk populations. This study determined ASB positivity, common uropathogens, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and risk factors of ASB among tertiary female students. A cross-sectional study was conducted on randomly recruited resident female students (n = 156). After questionnaire completion, urine samples were collected on appointment basis and routinely analyzed. Dipstick, microscopy, and urine culture methods were used to establish ASB positivity. Disk diffusion method was used to determine AMR. From 156 urine samples, 15 (9.6%) tested positive for ASB 5 (single organism count > 10 /mL from two consecutively voided mid-stream urine). A total of 24 isolates comprising: coagulase negative Staphylococci (CoNS) 9 (37.5%), Klebsiella pneumonia 6 (25.0%), Staphylococcus aureus 5 (20.8%), Escherichia coli 2 (8.3%), and Serratia marcescens 2 (8.3%). All isolates exhibited 100% susceptibility to nitrofurantoin and gentamicin but 100% resistance to ampicillin. CoNS were 100% sensitive to all antibiotics except cefuroxime and ampicillin. S. aureus and K. pneumonia exhibited acquired multidrug resistance to antibiotics belonging to ≥ 5 chemical classes. ASB positivity was 9.6%; nitrofurantoin and gentamicin were the most effective antibiotics, and ASB may be associated with poor personal hygiene.