Sensitivity of microorganisms associated with urinary tract infections to some antibiotics among patients in hospitals within Makurdi metropolis, Nigeria

Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) constitute serious health problems affecting all ages and sexes.  The microorganisms implicated in urinary tract infections from four different hospitals in Makurdi Metropolis, Nigeria were investigated. Two hundred midstream urine samples were collected from both male and female patients for analysis by Kirby Bauer’s method following the definition of the National Committee of Clinical Laboratory Standards. The microorganisms present in the urine samples that were identified to cause UTI in four hospitals within Makurdi Metropolis included Escherichia coli (43.8%), Staphylococcus aureus (23.9%), Klebsiella spp (10.74%), Streptococcus pyogenes (9.09%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (8.26%) and Proteus species (4.13%). The result showed that 39.5% of the urine samples collected had no microorganism. The isolates in female patients were higher (77%) compared to the male patients (44%). Antimicrobial drugs such as gentamicin and erythromycin tested on the isolated microorganisms showed higher efficacy to all isolates, while streptomycin, tetracycline and ampicillin showed lower efficacy to the probable isolates. This research showed that Escherichia coli are the major cause of UTI.