Conference Abstract | Volume 9 (ConfProc7): Abstract 108 | Published: 13 Oct 2026
Ewurabena Bediako1,2,3,&, Mary Nkansa2, Belinda Osei-Akoto3, Lucy Brunton4, Loretta Korlekor Aminarh5, Sandra Padikie Nyumutei6, Awurama Gyamfuah Asirifi7, Christian Tawiah Teye-Mormor1
1Veterinary Services Directorate, 2Fisheries Commission of Ghana, 3Ghana Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Accra Ghana, 4Small Animal Teaching Hospital, University of Ghana, 5Royal Veterinary College, 6University of Ghana , 7International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University
&Corresponding author: Ewurabena Bediako, Veterinary Services Directorate, Fisheries Commission of Ghana, Email; abenanbediako@gmail.com
Received: 29 Aug 2025, Accepted: 28 Oct 2025, Published: 13 Oct 2026
Domain: Infectious Disease Epidemiology
This is part of the Proceedings of the 8th Ghana FELTP Scientific Conference and FELTP Competency Graduation, Accra, Ghana, 10 – 11 December, 2025
Keywords: AMR, aquaculture, Ghana, MDR, Streptococcus spp
©Ewurabena Bediako et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Ewurabena Bediako et al. Antimicrobial resistance patterns in aquaculture, Greater Accra Region, Ghana, 2022-2024. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2026;9(ConfProc7):108. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO7-00108
Globally, 4.95 million people lost their lives to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in 2019. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria are resistant to ≥ 3 antimicrobial classes. Aquaculture is the farming of aquatic organisms. AMR bacteria from aquaculture enter the food chain through contaminated aquaculture products and water. Some zoonotic aquaculture bacteria show up to 89.5% resistance to ≥ 1 antimicrobial class, limiting the effectiveness of antibiotics for human infections and increasing mortality. Zoonotic Streptococcus spp. affects fish, poultry, and mammals. The objective of the study was to describe the pattern (fish species, year, and districts) of aquaculture bacterial infections and to estimate the proportion of MDR Streptococcus spp. within the Greater Accra Region (GAR) from 2022 to 2024.
A descriptive cross-sectional study was employed to analyze the distribution of bacterial isolates across aquaculture within GAR districts from 2022 to 2024 from passive and active AMR surveillance. Farmers and fisheries officers reported morbidity and mortality events while samples were collected by veterinary officers and submitted for bacteriological analysis. In the active surveillance, five fish were conveniently sampled from 18 farms. Proportions of resistant isolates were calculated from bacteriological culture and antimicrobial sensitivity results and visualized using Microsoft Excel, while geospatial mapping of farms was conducted in QGIS.
One hundred and fifty bacterial isolates were obtained from 16 different bacterial genera. Sixty percent (90/150) of isolates were obtained from tilapia, with 59.6% (89/150) of isolated bacteria found in the Shai-Osudoku district (SODA). The year 2022 recorded 34.7% (52/150) of Streptococcus spp. isolated from fish. All (100%, 49/49) isolated Streptococcus spp. were MDR.
Tilapia, SODA, and the year 2022 had the most bacterial infections. All Streptococcus spp. were MDR, possibly leading to wider spread in humans and aquaculture. We recommend the promotion of strengthened surveillance and regulation of antibiotic use in aquaculture by the Fisheries Commission.
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