Prevalence of Antibiotic-Resistant Seafood-Borne Pathogens in Retail Seafood Sold in Malaysia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

• Published in: Antibiotics (Basel) 2023-04, Vol.12 (5), p.829
• Main Authors: Odeyemi, Omowale A, Amin, Muhamad, Dewi, Fera R, Kasan, Nor Azman, Onyeaka, Helen, Stratev, Deyan, Odeyemi, Olumide A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Antibiotic resistance; Antibiotics; Carbenicillin; Cephalopods; Contamination; Crustaceans; Disease transmission; Drug resistance; Drug resistance in microorganisms; Fish; Meta-analysis; microbial diversity; Mollusks; Online databases; Pathogenic microorganisms; Pathogens; Penicillin; Public health; retail seafood; Salmonella; Seafood; seafood-borne pathogens; Systematic review; Tetracycline; Tetracyclines; Tilapia
• ISSN: 2079-6382; 2079-6382
• DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics12050829

The objective of this study was to examine the frequency and extent of antibiotic-resistant pathogens in seafood sold in Malaysia, using a systematic review and meta-analysis approach to analyze primary research studies. Four bibliographic databases were systematically searched for primary studies on occurrence. Meta-analysis using a random-effect model was used to understand the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in retail seafood sold in Malaysia. A total of 1938 primary studies were initially identified, among which 13 met the inclusion criteria. In the included primary studies, a total of 2281 seafoods were analyzed for the presence of antibiotic-resistant seafood-borne pathogens. It was observed that 51% (1168/2281) of the seafood was contaminated with pathogens. Overall, the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant seafood-borne pathogens in retail seafood was 55.7% (95% CI: 0.46-0.65). Antibiotic-resistant species had an overall prevalence of 59.9% (95% CI: 0.32-0.82) in fish, species had an overall prevalence of 67.2% (95% CI: 0.22-0.94) in cephalopods, and MRSA had an overall prevalence of 70.9% (95% CI: 0.36-0.92) in mollusks. It could be concluded that there is a high prevalence of antibiotic-resistant seafood-borne pathogens in the retail seafood sold in Malaysia, which could be of public health importance. Therefore, there is a need for proactive steps to be taken by all stakeholders to reduce the widespread transmission of antibiotic-resistant pathogens from seafood to humans.