Evaluation of antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of common pathogens isolated from routine specimens of patients in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Central India: a prospective observational study

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant global health concern, especially in developing countries such as India, where heavy antibiotic use has led to rising resistance in common pathogens and made treatment harder. This study evaluated the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of common pathogens isolated from routine clinical specimens. Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted in the Department of Microbiology, Government Medical College, Gondia, from 1 April 2024 to 31 October 2025, after Institutional Ethics Committee approval (GMCG/Pharmac/IEC/51/31-3-2024). A total of 1,000 routine clinical specimens (urine, blood, sputum, high vaginal and wound swabs, stool and body fluids) were cultured on blood agar, MacConkey agar and chocolate agar. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method and interpreted according to CLSI and EUCAST guidelines. Data were analysed with SPSS version 20 using the chi-square test, and p<0.05 was considered significant. Results: Escherichia coli (23.2%), Staphylococcus aureus (22.2%; MRSA 11.8%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (19.1%) were the commonest isolates. MRSA formed 53.2% of S. aureus and was fully susceptible to vancomycin and linezolid. E. coli and K. pneumoniae were highly resistant to third-generation cephalosporins (ceftazidime resistance 69.0% and 75.7%), while amikacin retained about 78% susceptibility. Carbapenem resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii exceeded 85%, with colistin about 95% susceptible. Conclusions: The occurrence of multidrug-resistant organisms such as MRSA and ESBL-suggestive Enterobacterales highlights the need for continuous surveillance and rational antibiotic use. Local susceptibility patterns are important when starting empirical treatment.