Epidemiology and Microbiology of Bacterial Bloodstream Infection in a Tertiary Hospital in Nigeria

Abstract

Background 

Bacterial bloodstream infections (BSIs) are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients, and data in resource-limited countries are sparse.

Methods 

A hospital-wide retrospective analysis of microbiologically proven bacteremia was conducted. Sociodemographic data, comorbidities, bacterial isolates, and their antimicrobial susceptibility pattern were recorded.

Results 

Of the 276 episodes of bacteremia studied, 130 (47.1%) occurred in females. The overall mean age was 15.29 ± 23.22 years. Community-acquired BSI was seen in 179 (65.0%) of the patients, whereas 97 (35%) was hospital-acquired BSI. Gram-negative bacteria 158 (57.2%) were the leading cause of BSI. More than 60% of the isolates were resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics, especially trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, ampicillin, and amoxicillin–clavulanic acid.

Conclusions 

Gram-negative bacteria are the leading cause of bacteremia with resistance to commonly prescribed antibiotics.

In Brief

Gram-negative bacteria were the leading cause of bloodstream infections in this study. The majority of the isolates were resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics, especially trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, ampicillin, and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid.