Changing Trends Of Multidrug Resistant Bacteria: A Six Year Experience From A Tertiary Care Hospital

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Clinical Research

Background:

• Antibiotic resistance is a growing global health threat, limiting effective treatment options for bacterial infections.
• Multidrug-resistant (MDR) organisms pose a significant challenge in clinical settings, necessitating an understanding of their evolving resistance patterns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the 6-year trend in antibiotic resistance patterns of multidrug-resistant organisms.
• To identify the most prevalent MDR organisms and their resistance trends in a Pakistani healthcare network.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective analysis of patient data from January 2014 to December 2019 at Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.
• Isolation and identification of MDR organisms from various clinical samples, followed by antibiotic susceptibility testing using Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute guidelines.

Main Results:

• Out of 34,628 cases, 5,159 (14.8%) yielded MDR organisms, with 55.7% being Gram-positive and 44.2% Gram-negative.
• The highest MDR trends were observed for Acinetobacter baumannii (0-70%) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (0-64%).
• Other notable MDR trends included Pseudomonas aeruginosa (0-16%), Enterococcus species (0-10%), and Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) (2.8-5.8%).

Conclusions:

• A continuous increasing trend of multidrug-resistant organisms was observed over the study period.
• There is an urgent need for ongoing surveillance of MDR organisms.
• Strict adherence to infection control strategies is essential to prevent the further spread of multidrug resistance.