The Prevalence of Gram-Negative Microorganisms Isolated from Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia Patients in the Intensive Care Units of Southwest of Iran

Background: Increasing microbial resistance is a severe threat to global public health. One of the most common diseases in the intensive care unit is ventilator-associated pneumonia. Methods: The method of this research was non-interactive and descriptive. This study was carried out from January to March 2018, at the Golestan Hospital of Ahvaz. Patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) were included in the study. The prevalence of resistant gram-negative microorganisms was studied through reported laboratory antibiogram results of cultures. Results: From 373 hospitalized patients, 38 (10.2%) were diagnosed with VAP. From the 57 respiratory cultures performed, overall 90 microorganisms were isolated, from which Enterobacter with 36 cases (39.5%) and E.Coli with 28 cases (30.7%) were most frequently compared to other organisms. From the 90 organisms responsible for the infection, 43 cases (47.2%) were Multiple drug-resistant (MDR) microorganisms and 47 (51.6%) were Extensively drug-resistant (XDR) microorganisms. Enterobacter and E.Coli were the most prevalent MDR microorganisms with 17 cases (39.5%) and 13 (30.2%), respectively. Also, these two microorganisms were the most abundant XDR microorganisms with 19 cases (40.4%) and 15 (31.9%), respectively. Conclusion: The results show the requirement of robust antibiotic monitoring and the optimization of antibiotic use in order to prevent the progression of antibiotic resistance in these units.