Proteus mirabilis is a Gram negative bacteria belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae. It is responsible for a variety of infections such as those of urinary tract, respiratory tract, burns, wounds and diabetic foot ulcers. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is an increasing problem worldwide. Proteus mirabilis shows high resistance to several antibiotics which could lead to multidrug resistance and failure of antimicrobial treatment.
In the current study, Proteus mirabilis isolates were identified according to traditional biochemical tests. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed by the disk diffusion method. Forty seven P. mirabilis were isolated from different sites. Complete resistance was exhibited with tetracycline. High resistance was found with ampicillin, ampicillin-sulbactam, sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim and chloramphenicol. Intermediate resistance was noted against cefepime, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefoperazone, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin. Low resistance was shown against piperacillin, amikacin, aztreonam, imipenem and meropenem. Multidrug resistance (MDR) was found in 87.2% of the isolates.
The inappropriate use of antibiotics has led to emergence of resistant bacteria which led to ineffective antibiotic therapy. Strict policies must be applied for antibiotic prescription for patients. In addition, susceptibility testing must be performed before antibiotic dispensing.