Keshav Kumar Bimal1, Suprakash Das2, Shashi Kishore3, Archana4, S. K. Shahi5
BACKGROUND
Acinetobacter spp. has emerged as an important nosocomial pathogen especially in ICU settings. Acinetobacter baumannii is the most commonly isolated species among different Acinetobacters and is associated with variety of human infections. A. baumannii exhibits resistance not only to beta-lactams and cephalosporins, but also to other groups of antibiotics including carbapenems and this has resulted in the emergence of multidrug-resistance A. baumannii species, which is now widespread. To know the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of A. baumannii is crucial for the optimal antimicrobial therapy and to resist the spread of MDR Acinetobacter spp.
The aim of the study is to study the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of A. baumannii isolated from various clinical specimens and to explore the risk factors for multidrug-resistant A. baumannii infections.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The present study was conducted from August 2015 to July 2016 at Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was done by Kirby-Bauer’s disc diffusion method. The zones of inhibition were interpreted for antibiotic sensitivity as per the CLSI guidelines 2014. Data regarding patients demographic and clinical status was obtained from medical records and possible risk factors for multidrug-resistant A. baumannii infections was evaluated for their statistical significance.
Statistical analysis used- Microsoft excel sheet 2007 and Epi Info software (version 7.2.0.1) was used for different statistical analysis including Pearson’s x2 test and simple logistic regression.
RESULTS
A. baumannii was isolated predominantly from respiratory samples (35.3%). Majority of the isolates were from different inpatient departments (59.1%), followed by different ICUs (40.9%). The A. baumannii isolates showed most sensitivity to colistin (100%) followed by polymyxin B (90.20%) and least sensitive to ampicillin (5.19%). Most of the isolates (60.66%) were multidrug resistant.
CONCLUSION
A. baumannii is emerging as a predominant healthcare associated multidrug-resistant pathogen, especially in the ICUs. This is a major challenge to the current era as untreatable infections by this organism may contribute to increased morbidity and mortality.
