[Serotype distribution and antimicrobial resistance rates of Shigella spp. isolates in Tehran, Iran].

In this study, antimicrobial resistance patterns and serotype distributions of Shigella spp. isolated from pediatric and adult patients with diarrhea, inhabiting in Tehran, were investigated. Stool specimens of 1350 patients with diarrhea who were admitted to the seven different hospitals in Tehran from November 2003 till March 2005 were taken into the study. Antibacterial susceptibility patterns of Shigella spp. isolates were determined by standard disk diffusion method. Overall isolation rate of Shigella spp. was found as 11.5 percent. S. sonnei was the most frequent species (55.1%) followed by S. flexneri (30.8%), S. boydii (9.6%) and S. dysenteria (4.5%). Resistance rates to ampicillin (81.4%), trimethoprim-sulphamethoxazole (93.6%), chloramphenicol (28.2%) and tetracycline (98.7%) were high, whereas low resistance rates to cefixime (5.1%) and nalidixic acid (2.6%) were detected. All isolates were found susceptible to ceftriaxone and ciprofloxacine. These data may help physicians for choosing appropriate empirical chemotherapy although subsequent antibacterial susceptibility testing is always recommended.