Antibiotics (Aug 2022)

Microbiology of Diabetic Foot Infections in a Tertiary Care Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil

  • Amanda Thurler Palomo,
  • Ana Paula Maia Pires,
  • Marcelo Fernando Matielo,
  • Rafael de Athayde Soares,
  • Christiano Pecego,
  • Roberto Sacilotto,
  • Alexandre Inacio de Paula,
  • Nair Hosino,
  • Cristiano de Melo Gamba,
  • Cibele Lefreve Fonseca,
  • Daniela K. S. Paraskevopoulos,
  • Augusto Yamaguti,
  • João Silva de Mendonça,
  • Silvia Figueiredo Costa,
  • Thaís Guimarães

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081125
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 8
p. 1125

Abstract

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Diabetic foot infections (DFIs) are one of the causes of hospitalization in diabetic patients and, when this occurs, empirical antibiotic therapy is necessary. We have conducted a retrospective study of patients with DFI that required hospitalization to evaluate microbiologic profile and the susceptibility pattern of these infections. We evaluated 320 patients, of which 223 (69.7%) were male with a media age of 71 years with 276 isolates. Gram-positive bacteria were responsible for 188 (68.1%) of the isolates, while Gram-negative bacilli were responsible for 88 (31.9%). E. faecalis was the most prevalent pathogen, followed by S. aureus and coagulase negative Staphylococci. Among Gram-negative pathogens, P. aeruginosa was the most prevalent agent. Regarding the susceptibility profile, we found ampicillin-sensitive enterococci in 89% of the cases, oxacillin-sensitive S. aureus in 47%, but in coagulase-negative staphylococci, oxacillin was sensible only in 20%. The susceptibility profile of Gram-negatives was very good with 76% susceptibility of P. aeruginosa to ceftazidime and meropenem. The other prevalent Enterobacterales had great susceptibility to ceftazidime, piperacillin-tazobactam and 100% susceptibility to meropenem, with the exception of K. pneumoniae, which had 75% susceptibility to meropenem. Knowledge of microbiological profile and susceptibility patterns of patients with DFIs is useful to guide empirical therapy.

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