Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance in Bacteria from Seminal Microbiota of Males Undergoing Evaluation for Infertility: A Cross-sectional Study in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

The role of bacterial and other microbial infections on seminal quality and male fertility has been attracting the attention of researchers and public health experts in recent times. A number of studies have reported negative impacts of microorganisms, including those of the seminal microbiota, though there have been few reports on the antimicrobial resistance status of the organisms. This study is thus focused on determining the prevalence and antimicrobial resistance in bacteria associated with seminal microbiota of males undergoing evaluation for infertility.

Methodology: This retrospective study involved the review of laboratory records of 243 males undergoing evaluation for infertility from January 2020 to December 2023. The statistical analysis involved the use descriptive statistics to present the results and use of Pearson’s chi square and Fisher’s exact test to test for association between the variables.

Results: The prevalence of positive cultures was 43.2%. The dominant species were Escherichia coli (29.2%), followed by Enterococcus faecalis (23.6%), Staphylococcus aureus (20.8%), Streptococcus agalactiae (17.0%), Acinetobacter baumannii (2.8)%, Klebsiella pneumoniae (1.9%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (1.9%), Enterobacter cloacae (0.9%) and Proteus mirabilis (0.9%). A cumulative of 79.2% of the bacteria were resistant to Amoxicillin/clavulanate and Norfloxacin They were followed by Chloramphenicol (69.5%), Rifampicin (58.1%), Azithromycin (37.1%), Streptomycin (37.1%) Ceftriaxone (34.3%) Ciprofloxacin (32.4%) Gentamicin (30.5%) and Levofloxacin (12.4%).

Conclusion: This study has helped to fill the gap of inadequacy of data on the subject matter, especially in Port Harcourt. It is hoped that more scholars will build on the outcome of this study in the area of seminal quality, infertility, microbial infections and antimicrobial resistance.