Aerobic pathogen profiles and antibiotic resistance in diabetic foot ulcers: Data from a Specialized Diabetes Center...

This study aimed to identify the aerobic bacterial profile and antibiotic susceptibility patterns in patients with infected and uninfected diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) at the National Center for Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Genetics (NCDEG), Amman, Jordan. A single-center, cross-sectional study was conducted from November 9, 2022 to January 2, 2023, involving 171 patients with DFUs. Superficial swabs and tissue specimens were collected, and antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. A total of 260 bacterial isolates were obtained, with an average of 1.6 pathogens per participant. Gram-positive bacteria (GPB) accounted for 65.1% of isolates, while Gram-negative bacteria represented 28.4%. The prevalence of monomicrobial and polymicrobial infections was nearly equal (50%). Among the 181 GPB isolates, Staphylococcus aureus was the most predominant pathogen, representing 39.8% of all GPB isolates. Notably, 68.1% of S aureus isolates were identified as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The GPB isolates exhibited complete susceptibility to vancomycin, linezolid, tigecycline, and teicoplanin. For Gram-negative bacteria, ertapenem, meropenem, amikacin, and imipenem were the most effective antibiotics. This study highlights the predominance of GPB, particularly S aureus, in DFUs, with a significant proportion of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates. The findings underscore the importance of continued surveillance of bacterial profiles and antibiotic susceptibility patterns in DFUs. Future research is needed to guide the judicious use of antibiotics in empirical therapy for diabetic foot infections.