Antimicrobial activity of a standardized medical honey on bacterial isolates from infected skin lesions of non-traditional companion animals.

ABSTRACT

In recent years, due to the growing phenomenon of antimicrobial resistance, the search for alternative strategies to antibiotic treatments is increasing and a considerable interest for the use of medical honey in clinical practice has emerged. Honey has been used for the treatment of skin lesions, in both humans and animals. However, knowledge concerning the use of medical honey in non­traditional companion animals is scarce. The aim of this study was to assess the antibacterial activity of a standardized medical honey (Revamil, BFactory) against bacterial strains isolated from skin lesions of non­traditional companion animals. The minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of Revamil honey against seventeen clinical isolates and three reference strains was established.The medical honey showed antimicrobial activity against both Gram­positive and Gram­negative bacteria. Growth was inhibited for all the strains at concentrations of medical honey ranging from 10 to 40%. Pseudomonas oryzihabitans and Alcaligenes faecalis showed the lowest MBC (10%). The reference strain Staphylococcus aureus ATCC25923 showed a higher sensitivity to 20% honey compare to the corresponding clinical isolate (P = 0.001). The observed results suggest that Revamil could represent an effective therapeutic aid, useful for the reduction of antibiotic use, in case of pathological skin infections in non­traditional companion animals.