The Kirby-Bauer antimicrobial sensitivity
test method was used to determine the antibiogram of the E. coli isolates (Bauer et al., 1966). Ten
antimicrobial drugs were used. These were imipenem
(IPM, 10 µg), ertapenem (ERT, 10 µg), aztreonam (AZM, 15 µg), cefepime (FEP, 30
µg), nitrofurantoin (F, 50 µg), cefuroxime (CXM, 10 µg), gentamycin (CN, 10
µg), amikacin (AK, 30 µg), ciprofloxacin (CIP, 5 µg) and levofloxacin (LEV, 10
µg).
Mueller-Hinton agar was prepared according
to the manufacturer’s protocol. The organisms were cultured on nutrient agar
overnight. Between 4 and 5 isolated colonies of the organisms were suspended in
about 2 ml of sterile saline by use of inoculating loop. The saline tube was
vortexed to create a smooth suspension. The turbidity of the suspension was
adjusted to a 0.5 McFarland standard. 200 ml of the suspension was introduced onto
the Mueller-Hinton plate. A sterile glass spreader was used to spread the
organisms on the plate. The surface of the plate was allowed to dry for 5 minutes
before the antibiotic discs were placed on them. Sterile forceps were used to
remove the antibiotic discs from the dispensers. After placing the discs on the
agar, each disc was gently touched with the inoculating loop to ensure their
contact with the agar surface. The plates were then incubated upside down for
24 hours at 37ºC.