American Society of Hirudotherapy

Aeromonas characteristics in Iran, Southwest Asia; a systematic review and meta-analysis on epidemiology, reservoirs and antibiotic resistance profile from aquatic environments to human society during 2000-2023

Research article published in BMC veterinary research (2025)

Last Updated: June 18, 2026Reviewed by: ASH Editorial Board
Research article — evidence reviewArticle reference
Evidence: Meta-analysisAntimicrobial ResistanceMoradi et al. · BMC veterinary research, 2025

Abstract

BACKGROUND: As recent evidence shows the prevalence and transmission of Aeromonas species in Southwest Asia, and there is no updated information on the characteristics of Aeromonas in Iran, we conducted this review. We systematically searched biomedical databases (PubMed, Web of Sciences, Scopus, SID, ISC, and Google Scholar) to identify relevant studies investigating the prevalence, antibiotic resistance, and main reservoirs of Aeromonas in aquatic animals and human clinical specimens during 2000-2023 in Iran. Cochrane's Q test and I^2 statistical test was used to assess heterogeneity, and publication bias was assessed using funnel plots and random effects tests. RESULTS: In Iran, among 8347 human clinical samples and 1802 animal and food samples, only 87 (1.04%) and 388 (21.53%) samples were positive for Aeromonas spp. respectively, and the most isolated species was A. hydrophila. The main reservoir for Aeromonas spp. were twenty-four genera of aquatic animals besides minced meat, pigeon stool and chicken meat. In Iran, Aeromonas spp. isolates showed maximum resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline, nalidixic acid and vancomycin. The heterogeneity test for prevalence of Aeromonas species on human samples and animals or food products was significant (88.1256, (5), P-value < 0.0001) and the heterogeneity rate was 97.34% with a confidence interval of 0.2-4.3 and (194.02, (10), P-value < 0.0001) and the heterogeneity rate was 94.85% with a confidence interval of 15,124 - 33,335 respectively. CONCLUSIONS: According to these results, it is essential for exclusive attention to the prevalence and antibiotic resistance of Aeromonas in different provinces of Iran. Furthermore, special planning should be done for prevention, outbreak control and proper treatment of infections in the aquaculture industry and human societies.

Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.

Publication typeJournal ArticleSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
Indexed MeSH termsAnimalsHumansAeromonasAnti-Bacterial AgentsDisease ReservoirsDrug Resistance, BacterialGram-Negative Bacterial InfectionsIranPrevalence

Summary

Peer-reviewed research on antimicrobial resistance relevant to Aeromonas and leech-associated infection. Indexed in PubMed and verified against the NCBI record.

Why This Matters for Hirudotherapy

This systematic review and meta-analysis of Iranian data (2000-2023) pooled 8,347 human clinical and 1,802 animal/food samples, finding Aeromonas positivity of 1.04% in human and 21.53% in animal/food samples (most commonly A. hydrophila), with maximum resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline, nalidixic acid, and vancomycin. The connection to hirudotherapy is meaningful because Aeromonas (notably A. hydrophila) is the gut symbiont implicated in post-leech-therapy wound infections, so regional antibiotic-resistance patterns inform prophylaxis choices and the long-standing caution that fluoroquinolone-class cover is typical. Caveats: this meta-analysis concerns aquatic-environment and general clinical Aeromonas epidemiology in one country, not leech-therapy infections specifically; the authors report high statistical heterogeneity (I^2 ~95-97%); and resistance profiles are geographically and temporally specific, so they cannot be generalized to leech-therapy prophylaxis elsewhere without local data.

Citation

Aeromonas characteristics in Iran, Southwest Asia; a systematic review and meta-analysis on epidemiology, reservoirs and antibiotic resistance profile from aquatic environments to human society during 2000-2023.

Moradi et al. · BMC veterinary research, 2025

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