Burn wound infections and antimicrobial resistance in tehran, iran: an increasing problem

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus remain the most important pathogens and are frequently the cause of burn wound infections in our centre. This is a particular problem in high-risk and long-stay patients and can lead to epidemics of infection in hospital settings. This study analysed P. aeruginosa and S. aureus infections in Tohid Burn Centre, Iran, in order to estimate their frequency and antibiotic susceptibilities. Out of 6704 strains examined, 4904 and 688 were found respectively to be P. aeruginosa and S. aureus in the period March 1995-September 1999, in burn patients hospitalized in this burn centre. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by the disk diffusion method outlined by the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. The overall frequencies of P. aeruginosa and S. aureus were respectively 73.1% and 10.3%; the remaining 16.6% consisted of other organisms. The frequency of P. aeruginosa resistance to cipro?oxacin, amikacin, and gentamicin was over 85%. The rate of S. aureus resistance to cloxacillin and cephalexin was 90%. P. aeruginosa and S. aureus were thus the commonest organisms in this centre. High frequency rates of resistance to these micro-organisms were found in this study. It is necessary to limit the use of antimicrobial agents in our epidemiological setting. In 2000 the Burn Centre was closed.