Objective: To determine the most common microorganisms in the body secretions of patients admitted in an intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary care hospital and estimate antibiotic sensitivities to those organisms.
Methodology: In this cross-sectional study performed in the medical ICU of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, Karachi, from January to February 2019, 95 specimens were collected from blood, endotracheal secretions, central catheter tips, and urine. Antibiotic sensitivity was tested by the disk diffusion method.
Results: Out of 95 patients, 69.5% were males and mean age was 27.37±10 years. All patients had positive bacterial cultures except one that was of Candida albicans. Bacteria were mostly gram-negative (85.3%, n=81) and the most frequently encountered were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (34.7%). Pseudomonas aeruginosa was most sensitive to polymixin-B (17.8%, n=17). For Acinetobacter baumannii, colistin (10.5%, n=10) followed by cefoperazone/sulbactam (5.2%, n=5); for Klebsiella pneumoniae, amikacin and imipenem had equally highest sensitivity (8.4%, n=8). For Staphylococcus aureus, amikacin sensitivity was found in the majority (7.3%, n=7).
Conclusion: Microorganisms with multidrug-resistance especially gram-negative ones are increasing day by day. A high percentage of resistance to the frequently used antibiotics (cephalosporins, quinolones, and carbapenems) was found. The antibiotics prescribed empirically should be according to regularly updated antibiogram.
Key words: Culture, antibiotics, antibiotic resistance, multidrug resistance, antibiogram, intensive care units.
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