Prevalence, risk factors and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella infection in turtles in Khon Kaen province

Abstract

Considering the impact of Salmonella in turtles and the role of turtles as a source of Salmonella outbreaks in humans,
knowledge of Salmonella status in turtles is important. A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate the
prevalence, risk factors and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella infections in turtles. Cloacal swabs were collected
from 378 turtles in Turtle Villages located in Khon Kaen province of northeastern Thailand between January 2018 and
April 2019. All samples were examined for Salmonella spp. isolation and identification by ISO 6597:2002. The overall
prevalence of Salmonella in the turtles was 37.57% (142/378). Habitat, season and sex were significantly associated with
Salmonella positivity (P<0.05) in univariate analysis but only season was significantly associated with Salmonella
positivity in multivariate analysis. Among Salmonella isolates, resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline and
sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim was frequently observed. None of the isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin or
norfloxacin. These results show that turtles are commonly infected with Salmonella and present a risk of possible
transmission to people who come in close contact with them.