Background: Urinary tract infections constitute a significant public health problem and present an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Irrational antibiotic use leads to treatment failure, adverse drug reaction and development of antibiotic resistance. The main aim was to study the bacteriological aetiology, their sensitivity pattern and antibiotic utilization pattern which aids in evaluating the rationality of antibiotic therapy. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted for a period of 6 months. Case records of 400 patients were selected based on the study criteria. Results: In our study (52%) were male. Diabetes mellitus (36.14%) was the most common predisposing factor. Escherichia coli (42.03%) was the most frequently isolated bacteria among Gram negative species whereas Enterococcus species (59.49%) was predominant among Gram positive species. Cephalosporin (25.16%) were most commonly prescribed antibiotics. Piperacillin-tazobactam (30.16%) was the commonest empirical antibiotic. Total of 541 bacteria were isolated from 400 cultures and each isolate showed resistant to one or more antibiotics. Gram negative bacteria were highly susceptible to Meropenem, Piperacillin-tazobactam and Gentamicin, and they showed resistance to Cefixime followed by Cefazolin and Ciprofloxacin. Gram positive bacteria were highly sensitive to Linezolid, Vancomycin and Teicoplanin where as they are resistant to Cefixime, Ciprofloxacin and Ampicillin. Conclusion: In our study none of the antibiotics has 100% sensitivity towards both Gram positive and Gram-negative bacteria and there is increasing resistance towards commonly used antibiotics. So it is recommended that selection of antibiotic should be done based on culture sensitivity and patient response.
Keywords: Urinary tract infection, Escherichia coli, Piperacillin-Tazobactam, Gram negative, Diabetes mellitus.