One hundred isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were obtained from patients admitted to Baghdad hospitals, Iraq during the period between May 2018 until July 2018. These isolates were distributed as 15 isolates from blood, 25 isolates from urinary tract infections, 10 isolates from sputum, 12 isolates from wounds, 15 isolates from ear infections, 15 isolates from bronchial wash of patients suffering from respiratory tract infections in addition to 8 isolates from cystic fibrosis patients. The isolates were initially identified by culturing on MacConkey agar, blood agar and P. aeruginosa agar then diagnosed by performing some morphological and biochemical tests. The second diagnosis was done by API 20E system followed by Vitek 2 compact system. Antibiotic sensitivity test was carried out towards 15 antibiotics using disc diffusion method (Kirby–Bauer method). The results of sensitivity test showed that P. aeruginosa isolates possessed high resistance towards most antibiotics under study, the most antibiotic resistance was towards Gentamicin 87 (87%), whereas the lowest resistance was towards Imipenem 10 (10%). In this study, two types of methods were used in the detection of biofilm formation: the first one was Congo red agar method and the second one was microtiter plate method. In the first method, results showed that biofilm formed by 57/100 (57%) according to black color production on media, whereas in the second method was 69/100 (69%) produce strong adherence according to OD in ELISA reader. Genotypic detection of many virulence factors related to P. aeruginosa was performed using conventional PCR. These included: gene coded for exoenzyme S (exoS), exoenzyme U (exoU), exotoxin A (toxA), two phospholipases C encoded by (plcH) and (plcN), alginate (algD), (lasB), rpsl, proteaseIV, and Neuraminidase (nan1). The results revealed that the most frequent gene was exoS as it was detected in 87/100 (87%) isolates, whereas the least frequent gene was nan1 as it was detected in only 9/100 (9%). The frequency of detection of other genes were as follows: toxAi in 55/100 (55%); plcH in 45/100 (45%); exoU in 42/100 (42%); plcN in 33/100 (33%); proteaseIV in 31/100 (31%), algD in 29/100 (29%); lasB in 28/100 (28%), and rpsl in 25/100 (25%). Phylogenetic analysis by Enterobacterial Repetitive Intergenic Consensus (ERIC-PCR), ERIC-DNA Fingerprinting revealed the diversity of all isolates in Baghdad by using Dice coefficient and the unweighted pair group method with arthmetic average (group method) of phylogenetic analysis. The percentage level of similarity clearly showed that the isolates examined by species were divided into two distinct cluster numbers, in addition to three single isolates (clone), that clustered at a similarity level of (93%). According to the statistical analysis, it was found that the correlation coefficient of ERIC genotyping method with virulence genes in this study and antibiotics sensitivity test was significant at P < 0.05 (two-tailed), whereas correlation with biofilm was not significant
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global concern, especially in low- and middle-income countries, threatening food production, healthcare, and life expectancy. Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programs can optimize antibiotic use, improve patient outcomes, lower AMR, and save healthcare costs. This observational-retrospective study in Dhi Qar Governorate aimed to assess antimicrobial prescribing patterns in Al-Nasiriya public hospitals. Dhi Qar Health Directorate comprises ten hospitals, and only one hospital was excluded from the study. The study used data from antibiotic stewardship committees, including antibiogram, antibiotic, and meropenem surveys, hospital pharmacies’ medical files, and the directorate statistics from 1/1/2
... Show MoreIn Iraq, because of the dramatic turnovers facing the country for three decades, pharmacists continue to experience significant professional challenges in both the public and private sectors. The present study aimed to explore the professional challenges and obstacles facing Iraqi pharmacists working in public hospitals. This qualitative study included face-to-face semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions with hospital pharmacists. The participants were selected purposefully (with ≥ 3 years of experience) to work at governmental hospitals in Karbala province between December 2022 and April 2023. The audio-recording interviews were scripted. Thematic analyses were used to generate themes and subthemes from the interview
... Show MoreUrinary tract infection (UTI) is a considerable problem aecting the health of people each year. It is caused by various Gram-positive (G+ve) and Gram-negative (G-ve) pathogens. It is an important illness in the world aecting all age groups across their life span. Objectives: To identify the most common aerobic bacteria that cause UTIs and their antibiotic susceptibility and antimicrobial activity of plant extracts of the males' patients. Materials and methods: The study involved 35 midstream urine samples from the male students (University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq) with suspicious symptoms of UTI, during the period from January-March 2018. Each urine sample was cultured rst on Mannitol Salt Agar and MacConkey agar plates to dierentiate
... Show MoreSeven isolates were identified as Pseduomonas aeruginosa from clinical samples. Antibiotic sensitivity test were done to determine their sensitivity to number of antibiotics, the results illustrated all that isolates were resistant to most used antibiotics. The ability of Pseduomonas isolates to produce haemolysin, protease and pyocyanin were detected in this study, all isolates had the ability to produce pyocyanin pigment, hemolysis and protease. The antimicrobial activity of the ethanolic extracts of Thuja orientalis and green tea against P.aeruginosa were investigated. The results showed that both these plant extracts have inhibitory effect against Pseduomonas isolates and it was shown that ethanolic extract of green tea was more efficie
... Show MoreThe objective of study was determining the most prevalent Salmonella spp. and their antimicrobial susceptibility in broilers and laying chickens and their feed and drinking water in five chicken farms in Karbala, Iraq over the period from August to October 2020. A total of 289 samples, including 217 cloaca swabs, 46 water and 26 feed samples were collected. Salmonella spp. was identified firstly by routine diagnostic methods, followed by applying the API 20E kit, the Vitek2 system, and serology. There was significant differences in Salmonella prevalence among different types of samples, mainly cloaca swabs reported a high isolation rate (21.7%). In contrast, feed samples were completely free of contamination. The highest rate of isolation w
... Show MoreBackground: Candida albicans is a prevalent commensal that can cause severe health problems in humans. One such condition that frequently returns after treatment is oral candidiasis. Aim: the goal of this research is to evaluate the efficiency of 940 nm as a fungicidal on the growth of Candida albicans in vitro. Material and Methods: In vitro samples (fungal swabs) were taken from the oral cavity of 75 patients suffering from oral thrush. Following the process of isolating and identifying Albicans. The samples are divided into four groups:(Group 1): Suspension of C. albicans was put in a solution of saline as a control group. (Group 2): Suspension of C. albicans that had been treated with nystatin. (Group 3): Suspension of C. albica
... Show MoreBackground: Candida albicans is a prevalent commensal that can cause severe health problems in humans. One such condition that frequently returns after treatment is oral candidiasis. Aim: the goal of this research is to evaluate the efficiency of 940 nm as a fungicidal on the growth of Candida albicans in vitro. Material and Methods: In vitro samples (fungal swabs) were taken from the oral cavity of 75 patients suffering from oral thrush. Following the process of isolating and identifying Albicans. The samples are divided into four groups:(Group 1): Suspension of C. albicans was put in a solution of saline as a control group. (Group 2): Suspension of C. albicans that had been treated wit
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