Bacterial isolates involved in cases of septicaemia in a Nigerian hospital

Of the nine hundred and twenty patients clinically diagnosed of having septicaemia at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex, Ile-Ife, Nigeria between 1980-1987, 233 (25.3%) had blood samples positive by culture. Thirteen different bacterial species were identified from positive blood cultures of which six predominated: Staphylococcus aureus (30.5%), Coliforms (17.6%), Klebsiella spp. (14.2%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (9.2%), Escherichia coli (7.9%) and Salmonella typhi (5.9%). The in vitro antibiotic, disc sensitivity pattern of the isolates showed they were relatively resistant to ampicillin and penicillin G but comparatively sensitive to antibiotics commonly used in the treatment of infections caused by these organisms. Septicaemia cases were recorded in all age groups but incidence in females was slightly but not significantly higher than in males (p less than 0.05). The study reveals the predominance of S. aureus strains in case of septicaemia in Nigeria.