Efficacy of silver coated foley's catheter in comparison with latex foley's catheter for prevention of antimicrobial resistance and catheter associated urinary tract infections in obstructive urolithiasis of male Buffalo calves

Foley's catheters are widely used for treating obstructive urolithiasis and are often associated with high rate of urinary tract infections. The urinary catheters act as a platform for colonization and biofilm formation by pathogens, leads to increasing the risk of catheter associated bacterial infections.

The present study was aimed to address the antimicrobial activity and biofilm inhibition effect of silver Foley's catheter in male buffalo calves suffering from obstructive urolithiasis. The study was conducted on twelve male buffalo calves suffering from obstructive urolithiasis, randomly divided into two groups irrespective of their age viz., group I (latex Foley's catheter treatment) and group II (silver hydrogel coated Foley's catheter treatment). Cultural examination and antibiotic sensitivity of cultured bacteria from the urine passed through fixed urinary catheter was performed at 0^th, 7^th, 14^th and 28^th postoperative days in both the groups.

There was significant reduction in growth of bacteria like Streptococcus, Staphylococcus and E. coli bacterial colony formation on blood agar and MacConkey lactose agar, respectively in silver catheter group as compare to latex catheter group from day 0 to day 28^th. The zone of inhibition was more pronounced for both antibiotics viz., Cefotaxime and Ceftriaxone (upto 24 mm) in urine samples collected from silver hydrogel coated Foley's catheter as compared to latex Foley's catheter indicating its biofilm inhibition effect on bacteria. Silver-hydrogel Foley's Catheter are more cost-effective as compare to latex Foley's catheter.