Antibiotic susceptibility of 2 800 strains of Salmonellae and Shigellae isolated in France, 1994.

A retrospective study of the antibiotic susceptibility of Salmonellae and Shigellae isolated in France during 1994 was carried out by the Collège de Bactériologie, Virologie et Hygiène des H?pitaux de France. The results of 2 800 susceptibility tests were provided by 76 centres representative of the french territory. This study reveals the frequency of high-level resistance among certain isolates, such as 1 093 strains of S. typhimurium to aminopenicillins, tetracyclines, chloramphenicol or cotrimoxazole, whereas others, like S. enteritidis (1 016 strains), showed practically no resistance. Some antibiotics can therefore no longer be used as first line therapy against bacteremia due to Salmonella.