Shedding of antibiotic-resistant members of the family Enterobacteriaceae in healthy residents of France and Jordan.

We compared the frequency of shedding of members of the family Enterobacteriaceae resistant to ampicillin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, kanamycin, gentamicin and ceftazidime in 83 French residents of the Paris urban area and in 101 subjects in Jordan, 64 of whom resided in the urban area of Irbid, 15 in rural areas, and 22 of whom had a nomadic lifestyle. There was no significant difference between these populations regarding (i) the percentages of subjects with strains resistant to any of the antimicrobial agents tested and (ii) the proportions of total counts of organisms of the Enterobacteriaceae resistant to these agents. The simultaneous shedding of strains resistant to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, tetracycline and kanamycin was significantly associated with (i) exposure to antibiotic treatment during the six months preceding the study and (ii) the presence of many children at home.