High resistance rates to ciprofloxacin and tetracycline in Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli: four-year results from a university hospital

AIM: Campylobacter spp. is the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis in humans. Antibiotic treatment is inevitable in serious Campylobacter infections. Increasing rates of quinolone resistance limits the treatment options. We aimed to determine the antibiotic susceptibilities of Campylobacters isolated in our hospital. METHOD: A total of 190 Campylobacter spp. isolated (Brucella blood agar) and identified (MALDI-TOF MS) in our laboratory between 2020 and 2023 were included. Disk diffusion method was used in detection of susceptibilities of the isolates to ciprofloxacin, tetracycline and erythromycin according to EUCAST v 14.0. RESULTS: Of the 190 isolates, 179 were isolated from stool, 8 from blood, and 3 from abscess. 163 isolates were identified as C. jejuni, 25 as C. coli, one as C. hyointestinalis, and one as C. sputorum ssp. bubulus. Majority of the strains (n:157) were isolated from patients aged 0-18 years. Isolation rates were similar on a yearly basis. The resistance rate to ciprofloxacin and tetracycline in C. jejuni was 87.7% and 70.6%, respectively (Table 1). Resistance to both antibiotics was seen in 68.1% of C. jejuni isolates. Ciprofloxacin, erythromycin and tetracycline resistance rates in C. coli were found to be 88%, 48% and 64%, respectively. Resistance to all three antibiotics was seen in 36% of C. coli isolates. CONCLUSION: C. jejuni and C. coli are important gastrointestinal pathogens in our region.Resistance to ciprofloxacin and tetracycline is very high in both species.Erythromycin resistance is also at a very high level (48%) in C. coli.