Surgical Site Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance Pattern

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Clinical Research

Background:

• Post-operative surgical site infections (SSIs) are a significant cause of patient morbidity and increased healthcare costs.
• Understanding the microbial patterns and antimicrobial resistance in SSIs is crucial for effective treatment and prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To isolate and identify microorganisms responsible for surgical wound infections.
• To determine the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of these isolated pathogens.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective study was conducted at Bharatpur hospital, Nepal, analyzing pus samples from May to October 2015.
• Bacterial cultures were performed, and antibiotic susceptibility was determined using the Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method according to CLSI 2014 guidelines.

Main Results:

• Bacterial growth was observed in 77.6% (194/250) of samples.
• Staphylococcus aureus (47.4%) and Escherichia coli (20.6%) were the predominant isolates.
• 39.2% of isolates exhibited multidrug resistance, while Amikacin demonstrated high sensitivity (93.1% for Gram-positive, 81.8% for Gram-negative).

Conclusions:

• Bacterial growth is a frequent finding in surgical wounds.
• Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli are common multidrug-resistant organisms in this setting.
• Amikacin is a potentially effective antibiotic against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria isolated from surgical sites.