AbstractBackground and Objective: Infection, extended hospital stays, and even amputation of limbs are common outcomes of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs), a prevalent and serious consequence of diabetes mellitus. Effective management relies on the prompt identification of the bacteria responsible for the infection and their profiles of antibiotic susceptibility. The purpose of this research was to analyze the antibiotic susceptibility patterns and microbiological profiles of bacteria isolated from diseased DFUs.
Material and Methods: A tertiary care hospital was the setting for a 12-month prospective observational study. This study was conducted at the Department of Microbiology, Sree Balaji Medical College and Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India from March 2018 to February 2019. We included 60 patients who had diabetic foot ulcers that were clinically infected. Standard microbiological procedures were used to culture wound swabs or tissue samples obtained under aseptic conditions. In order to identify the isolates, biochemical testing, Gram staining, and colony morphology were employed. The Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method was used to conduct antimicrobial susceptibility testing in accordance with CLSI standards.
Results: Microbiological growth was detected in 54 out of 60 samples, or 90% of the time. Nineteen (35.2%) of the cultures that came back positive had evidence of polymicrobial illness. The bulk of the organisms were Gram-negative, with the most common being Pseudomonas aeruginosa (22.2%), Escherichia coli (18.5%), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (14.8%). Staphylococcus aureus was detected in 16.7% of cases among Gram-positive isolates, with 40% of those cases involving MRSA. Only 7.4 percent of samples did not include anaerobes. A lot of gram-negative bacteria are resistant to ciprofloxacin and ampicillin, however meropenem and amikacin still work rather well. When it came to Gram-positive bacteria, linezolid and vancomycin worked wonders.
Conclusion: The study shows that Gram-negative bacilli and other multidrug-resistant organisms are frequently found in diabetic foot ulcers. The best way to handle DFUs is with a personalized antibiotic strategy that takes culture and sensitivity into account. The most effective way to guide empirical therapy is to periodically monitor microorganism profiles and resistance trends.
