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ABSTRACT
The space under the fingernails which is called the subungual region, is “an important site” for harbouring bacteria and can serve as a major vehicle of transmission of various microbes, including the enteric species from one person to another. The aim of this study was to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and hemolysin production by bacteria isolated from the subungual region of nails of students in the University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. Samples were obtained, by means of sterile cotton swabs moistened in physiological saline, from 10 students and cultured on nutrient agar overnight at 37oC and isolates were identified by standard bacteriological tests. All samples were found to habour bacteria under the finger nails. Bacterial isolated from the under nails of the students were Staphylococcus spp which had the highest prevalence of 6(60%) followed by Escherichia coli with a prevalence of 4(40%), Bacillus cereus 3(30%), Klebsiella spp. 3(30%) and Acinetobacter spp. and Streptococcus spp. had 2(20%) respectively. Males (60%) harboured more bacterial species than females (40%). Some of the isolates were β-hemolytic with Staphylococcus aureus having the highest number (83.3%) of hemolytic strains. The two isolate of Streptococcus spp were α-hemolytic. The S. aureus, E. coli and Streptococcus spp were susceptible to chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin and gentamicin but resistant to ampiclox, amoxicillin and norfloxacin. Bacillus cereus was susceptible to erythromycin and ampiclox but resistant to levofloxacin and streptomycin while Acinetobacter and Klebsiella app were resistant to amoxicillin but highly susceptible to gentamicin and augmentin respectively. Some of these organisms, especially the hemolytic ones could be pathogenic. There should be increase awareness of hand and fingernail hygiene to minimize the possible transmission of pathogenic organisms.
