Antimicrobial resistance of uropathogens in women with acute uncomplicated cystitis from primary care settings

We assessed the antimicrobial resistance patterns of all urine samples submitted for culture from outpatient women aged ≥14 years with diagnosis of uncomplicated cystitis over a 24-month period (2007–2009) in the city of Fortaleza, Brazil. Only bacterial growth of a single uropathogen with ≥10⁵ CFU/mL was considered for analysis. The Pearson’s chi-square test was used for bivariate correlations. Escherichia coli presented the highest prevalence (64.7%). Coagulase-negative staphylococcus was more common in younger than in older women (P = 0.003). Gentamicin presented the lowest overall resistance pattern (3.5% resistant), followed by ceftriaxone (5%) and norfloxacin (7.5%). Ampicillin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole were the least active agents with 63.7% and 39.8% of resistance, respectively. The resistant rate to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was significantly higher among E. coli than non-E. coli isolated. Among ciprofloxacin-resistant E. coli strains, only 3.4% were resistant to nitrofurantoin. We conclude that trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole follows a worldwide tendency of antimicrobial increasing resistance and it should be avoided as first-line empirical treatment for urinary tract infections.