Characterization of the antibiotic profile of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from a tertiary care center

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa has already gained its profile as a super bug and drug resistant clinical isolates are a challenge for the clinicians who treat those infections. The organism exhibits natural resistance to many of the commonly used antibiotics besides can acquire chromosomal as well as plasmid mediated resistance. Recent reports indicate the emergence of Multi drug resistant strains from various centres and there by underscore the importance of continuous monitoring of the sensitivity patterns. The present study was aimed to monitor the antibiotic profile of P.aeruginosa isolates from a tertiary care centre in South India and to understand the antimicrobial resistance pattern of the organism from this geographical region. Methods: In this study we have screened various specimens like urine, sputum, broncho alveolar lavage (BAL), endotracheal aspirates (ETA), ascetic fluid, pleural fluid, pus and blood for the presence of P. aeruginosa . Identification was done by conventional methods and antimicrobial resistance patterns were analyzed. Results: Eighty six isolates of P.aeruginosa were obtained from various clinical specimens over a period of one year. Most of the isolates were least susceptible to Ciprofloxacin and Meropenem (72 percentages each). All isolates were uniformly susceptible to colistin (100 %). The susceptibilities of isolates to other commonly used antibiotics were Ceftazidime 76%, Cefepime 77 %, Imipenem 94%, Amikacin 83%, Gentamicin 77%, Tobramycin 77 %, Netilmicin 77%, Piperacillin tazobactam 91 % and cefaperazone sulbactam 86%. Conclusions: Increasing resistance in P. aeruginosa coupled with its ability to survive a variety of environmental conditions makes it a deadly pathogen, especially in the hospital environment. Constant surveillance of antimicrobial resistance trends, administration of appropriate antibiotics, use of combination therapy and simple measures like hand washing have become quintessential for the control of this organism.