Susceptibility to rifaximin and other antimicrobials of bacteria isolated in patients with acute gastrointestinal infections in Southeast Mexico.

INTRODUCTION Enteropathogenic bacteria isolated in Mexico City have shown a high rate of resistance to different antibiotics, with the exception of rifaximin (RIF). RIF is a nonabsorbable antibiotic that reaches high fecal concentrations (≈ 8,000μg/g). Susceptibility to antimicrobials can vary in different geographic regions. AIM To study the susceptibility to rifaximin and other antimicrobials of enteropathogenic bacteria isolated in patients with acute diarrhea in the southeastern region of Mexico. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 614 strains of bacteria isolated from patients with acute diarrhea from 4 cities in Southeast Mexico were analyzed. An antibiogram with the following antibiotics was created: ampicillin (AMP), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (T-S), neomycin (NEO), furazolidone (FUR), ciprofloxacin (CIP), chloramphenicol (CHL), and fosfomycin (FOS), assessed through the agar diffusion method at the standard concentrations recommended by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) and the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), and RIF, assessed through microdilution at 4 concentrations. RESULTS The bacteria were Escherichia coli (55%), as the majority, in all its pathogenic variants, Shigella (16.8%), Salmonella (15.3%), Aeromonas (7.8%), and less than 5% Campylobacter, Yersinia, Vibrio, and Plesiomonas. The accumulated overall susceptibility to RIF was 69.1, 90.8, 98.9, and 100% at concentrations of 100, 200, 400, and 800μg/ml, respectively. Overall susceptibility to other antibiotics was FOS 82.8%, CHL 76.8%, CIP 73.9%, FUR 64%, T-S 58.7%, NEO 55.8%, and AMP 23.8%. Susceptibility to RIF at 400 and 800μg was significantly greater than with the other antimicrobials (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS The data of the present study were similar to those of a previous study carried out in Mexico City: susceptibility to RIF in > 98% of the bacterial strains and a high frequency of resistance to several common antimicrobials.