PREVALENCE OF MULTIDRUG RESISTANT SALMONELLA TYPHI FROM NAIL SCRAPINGS OF RESTAURANT WORKERS

Background: Salmonella typhi forms many multidrug resistant strains causing typhoid fever, which creates a global threat in many developing countries where the hygienic standards are rather poorer. The study aimed to isolate Salmonella typhi from the nail scrapings of restaurant workers and to establish the multi-drug resistance and to determine the plasmid profiling of the isolates with various procedures and protocols. Materials & Methods: This cross sectional study which was designed during the period of February 16, 2021 and March 1, 2022 to analyse 100 nail scrapping samples from healthy and asymptomatic restaurant workers for the presence of Salmonella Typhi. The isolates were subjected to the antibiotic sensitivity testing against commercial antibiotics like Amikacin, Cephalothin, Ampicillin, Ciprofloxacin, Erythromycin, Gentamycin, Ofloxacin minocycline, Cefaclor, Penicillin G, Rifampicin, Novobiocin, Netillin, Teicoplanin and Bacitracin. Multiple antibiotic indices were calculated for the isolates. The plasmid Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was isolated and the data were statistically analysed. Results: Out of 100 specimens, only six showed the presence of Salmonella typhi and all were multidrug resistant, as they were resistant to the seven of the selected antibiotics. All the isolates were harboured the plasmids with comparatively higher molecular weight justifying the resistance. Conclusion: The study underlines the importance of awareness creation on hygiene practices and continuous monitoring of restaurant workers as they are in very close contact with customers.