Abstract
Patients with hypertension may be more susceptible to acquiring Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) infections, according to some studies. Hypertension and certain antihypertensive drugs predispose to multidrug-resistant bacteria. The present study, carried out at the Laquintinie Hospital in Douala, is aimed at determining the antibiotic-resistant profile of fecal carriage S. aureus in hypertensive patients and their association with hypertension. This was a cross-sectional study that was carried out from June 2022 to June 2023. Five hundred and eighteen (518) stool samples were collected, from which the isolation of S. aureus was made using mannitol salt agar. Mannitol fermentation, catalase, and coagulase tests were used for species identification. The Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method was used for the antibiotic susceptibility assay. Our study revealed that the frequency of fecal carriage of S. aureus was significantly higher in hypertensive participants (65.15%, n = 43) compared to nonhypertensive participants (34.85%, n = 23). The frequency of fecal carriage of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) was significantly higher in participants with hypertension compared to nonhypertensive participants (88.37% vs. 47.83%, p ~ 0.001). The antibiotic susceptibility test revealed that the resistance of S. aureus to fusidic acid, cotrimoxazole, and oxacillin was significantly higher in hypertensive than in nonhypertensive patients. There was a significant association between hypertension and S. aureus resistance to oxacillin (OR = 8.29, p ~ 0.001) and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (OR = 6.07, p = 0.001). In addition, S. aureus isolates showed high resistance rates in treated hypertensive participants compared to untreated hypertensive participants. This study reveals that S. aureus exhibits high resistance to many of the clinically used antimicrobials. The need for appropriate antibiotic use to halt, or at least limit, the spread of resistance is suggested in the care of hypertensive patients with enteric infection caused by S. aureus.