RESUMEN
Studies on marine mammals can inform our understanding of the environmental health of the ocean. To evaluate the potential for changes in antimicrobial resistance, we analyzed a database spanning 2004-2010 that consisted of bacterial isolate identity and antimicrobial sensitivity for stranded pinnipeds in the Northwest Atlantic. Samples (n = 170) from treated animals yielded 310 bacterial isolates representing 24 taxa. We evaluated changes in antimicrobial class resistance from 2004 to 2010 for eight taxa. Escherichia coli displayed a significant increase in resistance to several antimicrobial classes. Other taxa displayed significant increases in resistance to aminoglycosides, and/or fluoroquinolones. In addition, we observed a significant increase in multiple antimicrobial resistance in cultures from untreated animals. These results demonstrate an increase in resistance among common bacterial pathogens of marine mammals over a time span of 6 years.