Comparative Evaluation of the Antibacterial Effects of Honey with Standard Antibiotic on Bacterial Isolates from Wound Infection

Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the antibacterial activities of the Honey against Ciprofloxacin on four bacterial isolates from a wound.

Study Design: It is a cross sectional comparative and observational study.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto State, Nigeria between July 2017 and October 2017.

Methodology: One hundred and one (101) bacterial wound isolates were collected and identified using the standard microbiological methods of Gram staining and biochemical test. The activity patterns of the Honey concentrations and the standard antibiotic were determined using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion and Punched Holes techniques. Similarly, minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) of the Honey were determined using Macrobroth dilution technique.

Results: Out of 101 isolates collected and identified, 33(32.7%) were Staphylococcus aureus, 29(28.7%) Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 21(20.8%) Escherichia coli and 18(17.8%) Proteus mirabilis. Antibacterial activity of honey was observed at 100% and 50% concentrations for S. aureus (10.7±0.13 mm and 8.4±0.16 mm), P. aeruginosa, (11.0±0.45 mm and 7.6±0.26 mm) and E. coli, (11.1±0.61 mm and 7.5±0.55 mm) respectively. Comparison of the inhibitory zone diameters showed that Ciprofloxacin (30.65±0.37 mm) had higher antibacterial activity than the raw honey (10.45±0.51 mm).

The Minimum inhibitory concentration (MICs) of crude honey on S. aureus was 5%, P. aeruginosa 50%, E. coli 20%, and P. mirabilis 100%, while the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of crude honey on S. aureus was 50%, P. aeruginosa 100%, E. coli 100%, and P. mirabilis was resistant.

Conclusion: The result obtained from this study established that honey possessed antibacterial activity at 50% and 100% concentrations against S. aureus, P. aeruginosa and E. coli, which indicates that development of inhibition zones, depends on the concentration of the honey used as well as the nature of the tested pathogen. The findings also revealed that ciprofloxacin has higher antimicrobial activity than the type of honey used in this study.