Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile of Bacteria Isolated from Hemocultures of Patients Attended in a Campaign Hospital During COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: Primary bloodstream infections are most commonly related to health care and are associated with intravascular devices, increasing patient mortality, length of stay, and health care costs. Among the complications of hospitalizations for COVID-19, bloodstream infection is one of the most prevalent, requiring prevention and early treatment. Due to the contingency of hospital resources during the pandemic, understanding the prevalence and incidence of antimicrobial agents that cause bloodstream infections and using exams judiciously are essential public health measures, avoiding the misuse of antimicrobials and being able to establish treatment. Objective: This study aimed to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility profile and the prevalence of etiological agents of bloodstream infections in patients with COVID-19 at the field hospital in the city of São Bernardo do Campo - SP. Method: A descriptive, observational, and retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out on the results of blood cultures already collected for diagnostic purposes from patients from May to August 2020 at the same hospital. Results: Of the 300 blood cultures analyzed, 73.7% of the samples showed no bacterial growth. Among the others, the main bacteria found were Klebsiella pneumoniae, sensitive to tigecycline, present in 30 (10%), followed by Staphylococcus sp. (coagulase-negative, non-lugdunensis), sensitive only to doxycycline, gentamicin, tetracycline, and vancomycin, in only 2 (14.3%) samples. Conclusion: In this study, a low rate of laboratory-confirmed bacterial coinfection was identified in patients with COVID-19.