Transport of antibiotic resistant bacteria in healthy children

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are widespread in the environment. Children can become carriers, even if they have never taken antibiotics before. Resistant bacteria can be passed from one child to another. Resistance to ceftazidime, chloramphenicol and tetracycline may develop under the influence of the co-selective effect of other antibiotics used in pediatrics. Family members, pets, other children and food can act as transmission factors.

In the UK, a study has been conducted to identify the frequency of carriage of antibiotic resistant bacteria in healthy children aged 7 to 8 years. For the study, nasopharyngeal swabs and fecal samples were taken. None of the study participants in the past year received tetracycline, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin or cephalosporins.

Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from nasopharyngeal swabs in 37.1% (in 200 children), 6% of the strains being resistant to chloramphenicol or tetracycline, 2% to methicillin. Haemophilus spp. isolated from 72% of the samples, 17% of the strains were resistant to ampicillin, 13.3% to erythromycin, 1.9% to tetracycline. Branhamella catarrhalis was found in 74%, while 8.4% of the isolates were resistant to erythromycin, 4.2% - to tetracycline. Hemolytic group A and group B streptococci were found in 17 of 507 children, one strain was resistant to tetracycline.

From excreta in 11%, gram sticks (-) with a high level of resistance to chloramphenicol were isolated, which in most cases were also resistant to ampicillin, spectinomycin and streptomycin. 17 strains were very resistant to 3 generations of cephalosporin - ceftazidime, and 6 of them produced extended spectrum beta-lactamases.