Emerging Threats in Urinary Tract Infections: Unveiling Antimicrobial Susceptibility and Resistance Patterns of Developed Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamases Producing E. coli.

Background: and Objective of the Study: The main aim of the study was to assess antimicrobial susceptibility and resistance developed by extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing E. coli. responsible for causing urinary tract infections and to identify effective antibiotic choices in these organisms. Method A cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted in which 200 clinical uropathogenic E. coli isolates were gathered and screened for antimicrobial resistance by the Kirby buyer method and confirmation testing for identifying ESBL producers was performed by a double disc synergy test. Results This study shows that females (82%) and adults (50%) are more prone to such infections because of different anatomical and behavioral changes. Antibiotics such as imipenem, amikacin, fosfomycin, and tazobactam/piperacillin exhibit 98.5%, 91.0%, 84.5% and 86% sensitivity patterns against collected E. coli isolates; hence, they can be the preferred choice of treatment against UTIs caused by E. coli . Forty-six percent of isolates out of 65 were found to be multidrug resistant. Fifty-five percent (107) of isolates were identified as ESBL producers after initial screening through an antimicrobial susceptibility test and were further confirmed as 60.7% (65) isolates positive for ESBL producers and 39.2% (42) negative for ESBL producers by a double disc synergy test. A statistically significant correlation was found between the MDR/non-MDR profile and the ESBL-negative/positive profile, as its p value was found to be 0.000, which is less than 0.05. Interpretation and Conclusion: It was concluded that although E. coli has developed resistance against many drugs, there are certain antibiotic choices that can be considered while prescribing. Females and adults are more prone to these infections and must be sufficiently educated to avoid them.