Antimicrobial susceptibilities for Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Haemophilus influenzae collected from 1997 through 2018 by 20 general hospitals in Tohoku area were surveyed. Among the 4197 S. aureus strains, 2104 (50.2%) were methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Though the MRSA detection rate of 1998 was 62.4%(270 out of 433 strains), that of 2018 decreased to 34.9%(103 of 295 strains) (p < 0.01). In this survey duration, the share of MRSA indicating vancomycin MIC = 2 μg/mL maintained approximately 4.6%. In the rate of detection of penicillin-resistant S. pneumoniae (PRSP) from 1997 through 2017, that of 2003 was the highest in 34.2%. However, each detection rate of 2000 and 2015 was 6.1% and 2.8%, respectively. In P. aeruginosa clinical isolates of 2010, the ratio of piperacillin (PIPC) or tazobactam/PIPC resistant strain was 16.6% and 14.5%, respectively. Whereas those decreased to 5.2% in 2018 (p <0.01). The detection rate of multi-drug resistant P. aeruginosa was 0–5.7% in survey duration. Finally, the proportion of β-lactamase nonproducing ampicillin-resistant strain (BLNAR) in H. influenzae gradually increased and was 75.9% in 2017.

We reported a trend of various antimicrobial agent susceptibility for clinical isolates collected by many general hospitals in Tohoku area. The continuation of the surveillance in each area will be necessary to practice antimicrobial stewardship.

The Department of Antibiotics that was established accompanying the birth of the National Institute of Health of Japan (NIHJ) in 1947 after the 2nd world war, had performed its public and scientific roles for 45 years until its reformation in 1992. Dr. Hamao Umezawa, the first director of the department, showed the excellent leadership in order to complete the stable supply to Japanese people of highly qualitative penicillin (PC) followed by streptomycin (SM). Subsequently, he run varieties of projects successively resulting in the discovery of the epoch-making antibiotic kanamycin (KM) and other important antibiotics as well as the establishment of Japanese Antibiotics Standard. Furthermore, his contribution over 30 years brought the outstanding development in Japan of antibiotic industry as well as antibiotic research. We will outline these historical achievements performed at the department of Antibiotics, NIHJ in this article.