Resistance in Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from Pig Faecal Samples and Pig farm Workers, Greece

In this study, we compare the degree of antibiotic resistance between the E. coli strains isolated from swine faecal and farm workers. Resistance in nine widely used antibiotics was assessed by the determination of Minimum Inhibitory Concentration. Sixty-four out of 72 E. coli isolates derived from pigs and sixty out of 72 derived from farm workers showed resistance to at least one antibiotic. High resistance in tetracycline, ampicillin and amoxicillin was detected in both human and swine E. coli isolates, showing similar resistance patterns. This finding indicates that the use of antibiotics in pig industry and the increased antibiotic resistance of animal E. coli isolates, also affects the resistance of isolates collected from farm workers, at least in the area of study.