Bacterial contamination of syrups in households found in squatter settlements of Mwanza city, Tanzania: A health threat to the community

Bacterial contamination of syrups due to improper handling or poor adherence to storage conditions cause spoilage of the products which might lead to serious clinical hazardous problems. Data on the microbiological quality of different syrups at community pharmacy and hospital level is well established. However, there is paucity of data (globally) on microbial contamination of syrups at household level. Therefore, the present study aimed at establishing the magnitude of bacterial contamination in syrups obtained from households and associated factors. About 292 of syrup samples of different types were taken to the microbiology laboratory for analysis as per established protocols. Data were analysed using STATA version 13 following the objectives of the study. A total of 292 syrups were sampled with average of 3.29 syrup type per household. Households found with contaminated syrups were 12 out of 89 (13.5%), whereas the total number of contaminated syrups in these households was 15 (5.1%). The most common bacterial species found as contaminant was Pseudomonas aeruginosa 4 (36.4%) followed by Enterobacter cloacea 2 (18.2%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae 2 (18.2%). A sufficient amount of syrups stored at households were presumably bacteriologically contaminated. The general public needs to be educated on proper handling and storage of liquid pharmaceutical products as a key aspect in eliminating cross-contamination of these products.