Prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Campylobacter isolates from commercial poultry suppliers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Objectives: Campylobacter jejuni isolated from broiler and layer chickens from registered abattoirs in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, were tested for their susceptibility to eight antibiotics. Methods: Using agar dilution, susceptibility to eight antibiotics was determined for C. jejuni recovered from the caeca. Results: A total of 155 isolates were collected of which 77 were identified as C. jejuni (broilers n5 56 and layers n5 21). Resistance was highest to tetracycline (broilers 98.2 % and layers 100%) and ceftriax-one (broilers 96.4 % and layers 100%). High susceptibility was found to ciprofloxacin (broilers 91 % and layers 76%) and gentamicin (broilers 98 % and layers 81%). Susceptibilities to each of the antibiotics fo