Evaluation of Secondary Bacterial Infections and Determination of Antibiogram Susceptibility Testing in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19.

Abstract

Background & objective: COVID-19 is a global pandemic that has caused an increase in hospitalization rates and high mortality. Secondary bacterial infections in hospitalized patients are one of the common complications of this viral disease. Due to the increased prevalence of antibiotic resistance, treating these patients is challenging. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the secondary bacterial infection and antimicrobial sensitivity test in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in a tertiary hospital.

Methods: In this retrospective descriptive study, all patients with COVID-19 who were admitted to Shahid Modares Hospital (Tehran-Iran) from October 2020 to March 2021 with positive culture results for bacterial infections, were assessed. The significance level was lower than 0.05.

Results: Ninety-seven patients with a mean age of 65.23 ± 16.72 years were assessed. The male patients accounted for 58.8% of the patients, while 41.2% were female. The ICU admitted patients with critical COVID-19 severity accounted for 59.8%, while 40.2% were hospitalized in the ward with a severe form of the disease. Age, length of hospitalization, and mortality rate were significantly higher in patients with ICU admission (all P-values<0.05). The most antibiotic-resistant bacteria were Klebsiella pneumoniae (32.98%). ICU admission showed a significantly higher rate in patients who were resistant to Cefotaxime, Ceftriaxone, Gentamicin, and Co-trimoxazole compared to the patients who were hospitalized in the ward (all P-values<0.05).

Conclusion: Secondary bacterial infection in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 may lead to high mortality.