Prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of Campylobacter species isolated from broiler chicken meat samples in district Bannu, Pakistan

The campylobacter genus of bacteria is important in public health as it comprises many species causing diarrhea in humans. Poultry and their products are recognized as vital causes of campylobacteriosis in humans. For bacterial food-borne diseases, Campylobacter is considered as the leading cause. Higher prevalence has been reported in developed countries. Our study was a cross-sectional study directed to determine the prevalence of Campylobacter species in retail broiler meat in the Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, from January to June 2018. A total of 200 poultry meat samples were collected from four different areas of district Bannu Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan that includes Lakki gate, Tanchi bazar, Bannu Township and Mangal milla. Mueller-Hinton medium was used for disc diffusion method to determine antibiotic resistance of Campylobacter species. Amongst 200 broiler meat samples, 60 (30%) samples were found positive for Campylobacter species. The highest prevalence was observed in samples from Bannu Township (50%) while lowest prevalence (12%) was observed in samples from Mangal milla broiler meat samples. Amongst different types of meat samples, highest prevalence was found in thigh meat (46%), while lowest prevalence was observed in cloacal swab (20%). Highest resistance was observed against Amoxicillin (AMX) 80% while the resistance observed against other antibiotics were Ampicillin (AMP) 70%, Tetracycline (TET) 65%, Sulphamethoxazole + Trimethoprim (SXT) 60%, Chloramphenicol (CHL) 56.66%, Clarithromycin (CLR) 50%, Streptomycin (STR) 40%, Gentamycin (GEN) 36.66%, Ofloxacin (OFX) 20%, Ciprofloxacin (CIP) 15%, Levofloxacin (LEV) 15% and Azithromycin (AZM) 10%. The lowest resistance was observed against Ceftriaxone (CRO) 5%. Our Study concludes that Campylobacter species is prevalent highly in district Bannu, and it might be a hazard to public health.