Abstract:

Background: This study was carried out to investigate the presence of antibiotic resistance in restaurant wastewater collected from three restaurants within the University environs. Methodology: The samples were examined microbiologically and tested for antibiotic sensitivity by conventional methods. The microbial load in the restaurant wastewater ranged from 1.18 x 105 – 9.9 x 105 and 2.9 x 105 - 7.9 x 105 after tyndallization. The microbial isolates were identified to be Corynebacterium sp., Pseudomonas sp., Klebsiella sp., Staphylococcus sp., Bacillus sp., the fungal isolates were Hafnia, Providencia. The highest percentage of occurrence was observed for Corynebacterium (38%), the lowest occurrence was observed for Staphylococcus, Bacilllus, and Providencia (6.9%). Antibiotic susceptibility of the microns were assayed according to the Kirby- Bauer disc diffusion method. Results: The result of this study indicated that out of all the strains of microorganisms isolated, the highest multi-resistant pattern was found with Corynebacterium, it was resistant to nine isolates out of the ten isolates it was tested for, was susceptible to only Chloramphenicol (30µg). Pseudomonas was the least susceptible, being resistant to only three antibiotics namely Ciproflox (10µg), Amoxicillin (30µg), Streptomycin (30µg). The results showed 50% resistance to Norobiocin (30µg), Ciproflox (10µg), Gentamicin (10µg), Amplicox (30µg), Streptomycin (30µg); 40% resistance to Levomycin (30µg), Rifampicin (10µg), 30% resistance to Amoxicillin (30µg), and 20% resistance to Chloramphenicol (30µg) and Erythromycin (10µg). Conclusion: With the current emphasis on environmental health and water pollution issues, there is an increasing awareness of the need to dispose these wastewaters safely and beneficially by ensuring they are treated properly before reuse or final disposal into water bodies.