Impact of COVID ‐19 Pandemic on Antibiotic Resistance Patterns of Common Bacterial Pathogens to Antibiotics in Northern Ghana

ABSTRACT Background Before the COVID‐19 pandemic, Northern Ghana reported high resistance to third‐generation cephalosporins, but most bacteria remained susceptible to amikacin and meropenem. Increased antimicrobial use during the early COVID‐19 pandemic likely heightened antimicrobial resistance. This study compared antimicrobial resistance before (October 2018–March 2020) and during (April 2020–December 2022) the COVID‐19 pandemic in Ghana's Northern Region. Methods A retrospective study was conducted at the Tamale Public Health Reference Laboratory. After the exclusion of incomplete records, 3677 culture cases were selected and analyzed. Antimicrobial susceptibility test results for all pathogenic bacteria were included. Results Of the 3677 cultures analysed, the majority were sputum samples (1792, 48.7%). From these, 1485 bacterial isolates covering 14 species underwent antimicrobial susceptibility testing. The predominant isolates were Klebsiella spp. (26%), Moraxella catarrhalis (20.7%), and Escherichia coli (18.4%). The majority of the participants were between the ages of (21–30) years. Antimicrobial resistance increased steadily above 50% from the third‐quarter of 2021 to the second‐quarter 2022. In a chi‐square comparison, the susceptibility of bacteria to amoxiclav ( p = 0.027), ceftazidime ( p = 0.002), ciprofloxacin ( p = 0.001), gentamycin ( p = 0.035), and meropenem ( p < 0.001) was significantly decreased during than before‐COVID‐19. The percentage increase in resistance observed was amoxiclav (8.8%), ceftazidime (7.9%), ciprofloxacin (9.2%), gentamicin (4.4%), and meropenem (16.7%). Conclusion Our findings reveal an increase in bacterial resistance to antibiotics during the COVID‐19 pandemic, reinforcing the need for public health measures to optimize antibiotic use. We recommend further research to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying this bacterial resistance to antibiotics.