Wastewater treatment plants are efficient in reducing bacterial loads but are also considered potential drivers of environmental antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In this study, we determined the effect of increased influent wastewater volume (from 40% to 66%) in the Legon sewage treatment plant (STP) on the removal of from sewage, along with changes in AMR profiles. This before and after study compared loads and AMR patterns in influent and effluent samples from a published baseline study (January-June 2018) with a follow-up study (March-May 2023).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWith safely managed water accessible to only 19% of the population in Ghana, the majority of its residents are at risk of drinking contaminated water. Furthermore, this water could be a potential vehicle for the transmission of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. This study assessed the presence of bacteria and the antibiotic resistance profile of and in drinking-water sources using membrane filtration and Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion methods.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMost presentations of conjunctivitis are acute. Studies show that uncomplicated cases resolve within 14 days without medication. However, antibiotic prescription remains standard practice.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: During 2014 to 2019, the SaniPath Exposure Assessment Tool, a standardized set of methods to evaluate risk of exposure to fecal contamination in the urban environment through multiple exposure pathways, was deployed in 45 neighborhoods in ten cities, including Accra and Kumasi, Ghana; Vellore, India; Maputo, Mozambique; Siem Reap, Cambodia; Atlanta, United States; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Lusaka, Zambia; Kampala, Uganda; Dakar, Senegal.
Objective: Assess and compare risk of exposure to fecal contamination via multiple pathways in ten cities.
Methods: In total, 4053 environmental samples, 4586 household surveys, 128 community surveys, and 124 school surveys were collected.
Infections by Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase producing (ESBL-Ec) are on the increase in Ghana, but the level of environmental contamination with this organism, which may contribute to growing Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), is unknown. Using the WHO OneHealth Tricycle Protocol, we investigated the contamination of (Ec) and ESBL-Ec in two rivers in Ghana (Odaw in Accra and Okurudu in Kasoa) that receive effluents from human and animal wastewater hotspots over a 12-month period. Concentrations of Ec, ESBL-Ec and percent ESBL-Ec/Ec were determined per 100 mL sample.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWastewater treatment plants receive sewage containing high concentrations of bacteria and antibiotics. We assessed bacterial counts and their antibiotic resistance patterns in water from (a) influents and effluents of the Legon sewage treatment plant (STP) in Accra, Ghana and (b) upstream, outfall, and downstream in the recipient Onyasia stream. We conducted a cross-sectional study of quality-controlled water testing (January-June 2018).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn crowded urban settlements in low-income countries, many households rely on shared sanitation facilities. Shared facilities are not currently considered "improved sanitation" because of concerns about whether hygiene conditions sufficiently protect users from the feces of others. Prevention of fecal exposure at a latrine is only one aspect of sanitary safety.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF