Extremely high prevalence of multi-resistance among uropathogens from hospitalised children in Beira, Mozambique.

OBJECTIVES A prospective surveillance study was conducted to investigate the epidemiology and patterns of antibiotic resistance among uropathogens from hospitalised children in Beira, Mozambique. Additionally, information regarding determinants of a urinary tract infection (UTI) was obtained. METHODS Bacterial species identification, antimicrobial susceptibility testing and extended-spectrum beta-lactamase testing were performed for relevant bacterial isolates. RESULTS Analysis of 170 urine samples from 148 children yielded 34 bacterial isolates, predominantly Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp., causative of a urinary tract infection in 29 children; 30/34 isolates (88.2%) from 26/29 children (89.7%) were considered highly resistant micro-organisms (HRMOs). No significant determinants of urinary tract infection with HRMOs were detected when analysing gender, antibiotic use during hospital admission and HIV status. CONCLUSION This study shows, for the first time in Mozambique, an extremely high prevalence of HRMOs among uropathogens from hospitalised children with a urinary tract infection.