Research article

Antibiotic susceptibility patterns among respiratory isolates of Gram-negative bacilli in a Turkish university hospital

Ugur Gonlugur¹ , Mustafa Zahir Bakici² , Ibrahim Akkurt¹ and Tanseli Efeoglu¹

¹Department of Chest Diseases, Cumhuriyet University Medical School, 58140, Sivas, Turkey

²Department of Microbiology, Cumhuriyet University Medical School, 58140, Sivas, Turkey

author email corresponding author email

BMC Microbiology 2004, 4:32doi:10.1186/1471-2180-4-32

Published:	22 August 2004

Abstract

Background

Gram-negative bacteria cause most nosocomial respiratory infections. At the University of Cumhuriyet, we examined 328 respiratory isolates of Enterobacteriaceae and Acinetobacter baumanii organisms in Sivas, Turkey over 3 years. We used disk diffusion or standardized microdilution to test the isolates against 18 antibiotics.

Results

We cultured organisms from sputum (54%), tracheal aspirate (25%), and bronchial lavage fluid (21%). The most common organisms were Klebsiella spp (35%), A. baumanii (27%), and Escherichia coli (15%). Imipenem was the most active agent, inhibiting 90% of Enterobacteriaceae and A. baumanii organisms. We considered approximately 12% of Klebsiella pneumoniae and 21% of E. coli isolates to be possible producers of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase. K. pneumoniae isolates of the extended-spectrum beta-lactamase phenotype were more resistant to imipenem, ciprofloxacin, and tetracycline in our study than they are in other regions of the world.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that imipenem resistance in our region is growing.