Multicenter surveillance of antimicrobial resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis in Taiwan during the 1998-1999 respiratory season

A susceptibility surveillance study of 276 isolates of Streptococcus pneumo niae, 301 of Haemophilus influenzae, and 110 of Moraxella catarrhalis was c arried out from November 1998 to May 1999 in Taiwan. High rates of nonsusce ptibility to penicillin (76%), extended-spectrum cephalosporins (56%), azit hromycin (94%), clarithromycin (95%), and trimethoprim-sulfamethozazole (TM P-SMX) (65%) for S. pneumoniae isolates and high rates of nonsusceptibility to amoxicillin (58%) and TMP-SMX (52%) for H. influenzae isolates were fou nd. Higher percentages of S. pneumoniae isolates nonsusceptible to aminopen icillins, extended-spectrum cephalosporins, macrolides, and TMP-SMX were ob served among penicillin-intermediate and -resistant isolates. All quinolone s tested were active in vitro against these three organisms.