title: Microbial carriage of cockroaches at a tertiary care hospital in ghana.
abstract: Cockroaches are common in the environment of many hospitals in Ghana; however, little is known about their public health risks. To evaluate potential risks, we investigated the external and internal microbial flora of 61 cockroaches from a tertiary hospital in Ghana and evaluated the antibiotic resistance profiles of the common bacterial species. Standard methods were used in all the microbiological investigations and antibiotic susceptibility testing. A rotavirus carriage rate of 19.7% was observed among the cockroaches. Four types of intestinal parasites were carried externally by the cockroaches, and the most prevalent was Hookworm (4.9%). Eight nosocomial bacteria were isolated from the cockroaches, and the most prevalent was Klebsiella pneumoniae, which occurred internally in 29.5% of the cockroaches and 26.2% externally. Multiple drug resistance among common bacteria isolated from the cockroaches ranged from 13.8% (Escherichia coli) to 41.1% (Klebsiella pneumoniae). Cockroaches constitute an important reservoir for pathogenic microorganisms, and may be important vectors of multiple resistant nosocomial pathogens in the studied hospital.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Ghana Medical School, Accra, Ghana.
authors.forename: Patience B
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Tetteh-Quarcoo
authors.forename: Eric S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Donkor
authors.forename: Simon K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Attah
authors.forename: Kwabena O
authors.initials: KO
authors.lastname: Duedu
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Afutu
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Boamah
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Olu-Taiwo
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Anim-Baidoo
authors.forename: Patrick F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Ayeh-Kumi
keywords: Klebsiella pneumoniae; antibiotic resistance; cockroach; hookworm; nosocomial; rotavirus