Bacterial Infections among Patients with Chronic Diseases at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Infections caused by multi-drug-resistant bacteria in patients with chronic diseases have been associated with high mortality and morbidity. While few reports have evaluated bacterial infections in multiple chronic disease patients, the focus of the current study was to investigate the prevalence of bacterial infections and the susceptibility profiles of causative strains among various groups of patients suffering from chronic diseases. Microbiological reports of patients suffering from cancer, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, kidney diseases, and skin burns were retrospectively collected from a tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia. Approximately 54.2% of recruited patients were males, and positive urine was the most prevalent specimen associated with kidney disease patients (25%). Escherichia coli isolates were predominant among cardiovascular, kidney, and cancer patients. Staphylococcus aureus was commonly detected in diabetics and those with burns. Although resistance patterns varied based on the type of specimens and underlying diseases, Escherichia coli showed limited resistance to colistin, carbapenems, and tigecycline, while S. aureus demonstrated susceptibility to ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, and rifampin. These observations are crucial for clinicians and policymakers to ensure effective treatment plans and improve outcomes in these patients with comorbidity.

Keywords: antibiotic-resistant; bacterial infections; chronic diseases; diabetes mellitus and skin burns.

Figure 1

Heat maps of antibiotic resistance profiles. (A) Resistance profile of Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) associated with patients suffering from cancer, cardiovascular diseases, kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, and burn) that were detected from urine and wound samples. (B) Resistance profiles of Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) associated with patients suffering from diabetes mellitus (DM) and burns that were detected from wound specimens. Results are presented based on the red color gradient reflecting the antibiotic resistance rate. The very intense/strong red color indicates the highest (100%) rate of resistance, whereas the absence of the red color was used for the lowest (0%) rate of resistance.