ASSESSMENT OF SPUTUM SAMPLES FOR Streptococcus pneumoniae IN UMTH MAIDUGURI, BORNO STATE, NIGERIA

Streptococcus Pneumoniae causes life- threatening disease of the respiratory tract. It is the most important of all the tropical disease in terms of morbidity and mortality. Across-sectional study on relationship between Streptococcus pneumonia and age was carried out at General Out-patient Department (G.O.P.D) of University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) Borno State, Nigeria. Variables assessed were sputum sample for S. pneumoniae, Age (No. of years), sex (male and female). A total of 211 patients were surveyed comprising 118(55.9%) male and 93(44.10%) female, 122(57.8%) of the study population were adult and 89(42.2%) adolescent. One hundred and thirty130 (61.6%) of the patient had S.pneumoniae infection in their sputum. S. pneumoniae infection of these 74(35.1%) were males while 56(26.5% were female but the difference was not found to be statistically significant (P>0.05) infection rate was higher among the adult 82(38.8%), than the adolescence 48(22.8%) and the difference was found to be statistically significant (P<0.005). however, Antibiotics sensitivity pattern of streptococcus pneumonial to some antibiotics indicated total resistance of sample as 0(0.0). penicillin, 28(21.5%) ciprofloxin, 22(16.9) streptomycin, 20(15.4%) erythromycin, 15(11.5) Rifampin, 15(11.5%) Gentamycin, 12(9.2%) Norfloxacin and 18(13.8%) Lincocin respectively. The antibiotic sensitivity profile in this study goes a long way to describe the degree of abuse and misuse of common routine antibiotics in the study area. Thus the information in this study is helpful in knowing the final solution of indiscriminate use of antibiotic and checking out to formulate   the control strategy in future.