title: Neisseria meningitidis with decreased susceptibility to penicillin in Istanbul, Turkey.
abstract: This study was conducted to estimate the rate of decreased susceptibility to penicillin (MIC > 0.06-1 microg/ml) in Neisseria meningitidis isolates in Istanbul, Turkey. A total of 30 isolates collected during a 1-y period from patients with meningitis and from nasopharyngeal carriers were tested for penicillin and cefotaxime susceptibility using the E-test. Two out of 12 (17%) clinical isolates and 11/18 (61%) nasopharyngeal isolates showed decreased susceptibility to penicillin with MICs in the range 0.094-1.0 microg/ml, giving an overall resistance of 43% (n = 13). These data show that continued surveillance of trends in antimicrobial susceptibility of N. meningitidis is important for detecting the emergence of N. meningitidis strains with MICs > 1 microg/ml which may pose serious therapeutic problems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Bacteriology and Infectious Diseases, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Capa, Turkey.
authors.forename: Metin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Punar
authors.forename: Haluk
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Eraksoy
authors.forename: A Atahan
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Cagatay
authors.forename: Halit
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ozsut
authors.forename: Arif
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaygusuz
authors.forename: Semra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Calangu
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dilmener
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002353:Carrier State / Q000382:microbiology*; D002439:Cefotaxime / Q000494:pharmacology; D002511:Cephalosporins / Q000494:pharmacology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000382:microbiology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008585:Meningitis, Meningococcal / Q000382:microbiology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D008875:Middle Aged; D009305:Nasopharynx / Q000382:microbiology; D009345:Neisseria meningitidis / Q000187:drug effects*; D010403:Penicillin Resistance; D010406:Penicillins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014421:Turkey
chemical_list: D002511:Cephalosporins; D010406:Penicillins; D002439:Cefotaxime