Isolation and characterization of microbial flora from skin samples of acne patients of Haripur, Pakistan

Objective: To determine the prevalence of different microorganisms causing acne vulgaris, antibiotics effectiveness and resistance inpatients presenting to hospital at Haripur city. Methodology: In this study, samples of 185 out of 1.004 million populations were collected in aseptic conditions and transferred to Microbiology Laboratory, University of Haripur. The age of patients ranged from 16 to 20 years and both genders were included. Individuals with a specific disease due to which acne appears like smokers and diabetic patients were excluded. The samples were inoculated on different selective media and antibiotic resistance was determined. Results: Out of 185 samples, 150 (81%) had positive culture, whereas 35 (18.9%) had negative culture. Out of the positive 150 samples, 68 (45.3%) were male and 82 (54.6%) female. The isolated bacteria were Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Propionibacterium acnes, Bacillus megaterium and Bacillus coagulans. Several antibiotics such as gentamycin, trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole and linezolid were most effective against different bacterial strains. Conclusion: It is concluded that males and females are susceptible to developing infection with acne at the age group of 16 – 20 years. Different antibiotics effectiveness and resistance was observed. (author)