Trends in the Antimicrobial Resistance Pattern of Bacterial Gram-Negative Pathogens in Elderly Patients Admitted to...

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains a public health problem in European Union countries, and elderly patients represent a vulnerable category due to aging and its associated risk factors. In this research, we investigated the trend of the antimicrobial resistance pattern of Gram-negative pathogens isolated in samples collected from elderly patients (over 65 years) hospitalized in the intensive care unit (ICU) between 2022 and 2024. A total of 2510 samples, including blood, tracheal aspirate, sputum, urine, pus/wound swabs, exudates, intravascular catheters, cerebrospinal fluid, and sterile fluids, were collected from 1864 elderly patients. Almost two-thirds of clinical specimens were harvested from the respiratory tract. The most frequently reported pathogens from 3094 Gram-negative bacterial isolates were Klebsiella spp., Acinetobacter spp., and Escherichia coli. During the studied period, almost 40% of all the Klebsiella spp. strains were multidrug-resistant (MDR)/extensively drug-resistant (XDR), with a significant increase in the resistance to cephalosporins (p ≤ 0.05), fluoroquinolones (p ≤ 0.05), and carbapenems (imipenem-(p ≤ 0.05), ertapenem-p < 0.001). The proportion of carbapenem-non susceptible Klebsiella spp. rose from 24.41% in 2023 to 32.48% in 2024, p = 0.01. Two-thirds of Acinetobacter spp. isolates were MDR/XDR, and over 80% were carbapenem-non-susceptible in 2023-2024. The results draw attention to the need to quickly adopt measures to reduce the prevalence, limit the transmission of MDR/XDR pathogens, and improve therapeutic protocols in this age category.