Objective: Salmonella infections are one of the most important public health problems of the world. Determination of Salmonella serotypes is crucial for epidemiological studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the serotype distribution and antibiotic susceptibilities of Salmonella species which were isolated from various patient specimens as an etiological agent during a thirteen year- period and to present epidemiologic data from our region.

Materials and Methods: This study includes 258 Salmonella strains isolated within the period extending from January 2002 to December 2014. Strains were identified as Salmonella spp. and antibiotic susceptibilities were determined by an automated system. Serotyping has been performed in the Public Health Agency of Turkey of Ministry of Health, (former Refik Saydam Hygiene Center) as part of the National Laboratory-based Surveillance Network of Enteric Pathogenes (UEPLA).

Results: Strains were distributed among 22 different serotypes; mainly serotyped as S. Enteritidis for 143, S. Typhimurium for 23, S. İnfantis for 12, S. Newport for 11, S. Kentucky for 10 isolates. Two S. Umbilo and one S. Chester isolate which were isolated from faeces are the firstly reported serotypes from Turkey. A decreased susceptibility was detected against chloramphenicol, ampicillin, and trimethoprim / sulfamethoxazole in Salmonella strains while, susceptibility to cefotaxime was high.

Conclusion: In our study the serotype distribution of Salmonella strains in thirteen years period was found to be consistent with the data from Europe, CDC and our country.