Shigella Antibiotic Resistance in Pediatric Shigellosis Infection: A Retrospective Study in Hormozgan, Iran

Background: Shigella is a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, nonperforming, nonmotile and rod-shaped bacterium that causes mucoid bloody diarrhea, known as dysentery or shigellosis. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Shigella species and the antibiotic resistance pattern of Shigella species isolated from children with acute diarrhea in Bandar Abbas Pediatric Hospital, south of Iran. Method: This descriptive and retrospective study was conducted based on the patients’ information in their checklists, including age, gender, Shigella culture results, Shigella species, cessation of fever, city of residence, duration of symptoms before hospitalization, antibiotic use in the previous two weeks, degree of fever at the time of hospitalization, vomiting, convulsions, dehydration, death, frequency of diarrhea, and loss of blood in feces. Results: Out of 162 patients, 82 (50.62%) were females, and 80 (49.38%) were males. Cultures of 46 patients (28.39%) were infected with Shigella flexneri species, 6 patients (3.72%) with Shigella boydii species, and 56 patients (34.58%) with Shigella sonnei species. Tetracycline had the highest rate of resistance (88.8%), and ciprofloxacin had the lowest resistance (7.41%). Conclusion: The pattern of common Shigella species has changed from S. flexneri to S. sonnei in recent years. The pattern of antibiotic resistance among these species is also changing; so regular investigation of the prevalence of different species and their drug resistance pattern is necessary to make a correct decision about the appropriate treatment.