Microbiological evaluation of infected wounds of the extremities in 214 adults

The aim of this multicentre prospective study was to analyse microbial pathogens cultured from an infected wound.

The study was performed in the emergency rooms of 10 public hospitals. All adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of cellulitis after a wound in the upper or lower extremities were included. Cultures were obtained with swabs from infected lesions. Micro-organisms cultured were identified by the usual methods and susceptibility testing was performed.

The study population consisted of 214 patients, 153 men and 61 women, with a mean (SD) age of 40 (10) years. Wound cultures remained sterile in 28 cases and infected with micro-organisms in 186 cases. Of the 186 positive cultures, three were not identified. Of the 183 remaining cultures, one micro-organism was present in 132 patients (62%) and several micro-organisms in 51 patients (24%). A total of 248 micro-organisms were isolated in 183 patients. Staphylococcus and streptococcus were the most frequently isolated micro-organisms (56% and 21% respectively) followed by Gram negative bacilli (18%). Determination of the susceptibility to the antibiotics commonly used to treat wound infections showed resistance in some cases.

These results support the need always to take culture specimens from infected wounds for microbiological evaluation and antibiotic susceptibility determination, so that adapted chemotherapy can be prescribed.