Antibiotic Resistance Pattern in Nosocomial Infections in Children's Hospital

Indiscriminate use of antibiotics in the treatment of Nosocomial Infections (NIs) has led to microbial mutation and drug resistance. Antibiotic resistance is a threat to public health, especially for children. The aim of this study was to investigate NIs and antibiotic resistance in children's hospitals.
This study was conducted retrospectively and descriptively using paper and electronic files of patients admitted to Dr. Sheikh Children's Hospital of Mashhad, Iran in 2023. The data were categorized in three seasons. Type and frequency of NIs, microbial mass, and antibiotic resistance were investigated based on seasons and hospital departments. Data were analyzed through descriptive statistics by Excel software.
The most common type of NIs in all three seasons of the study was blood system infection (BSI) (64.98 %). Although in ICU, Ventilator-Associated Event Infection (VAEI) was more common. Klebsiella, with an average of 18.97%, was the most common cause of NIs. The most commonly used antibiotics were cephalosporin, and vancomycin. The highest rate of resistance was related to Acinetobacter. In the second and third seasons, this bacterium showed more than 80-100% resistance to cephalosporin, fluoroquinolone, aminoglycoside and carbapenem. The highest rate of Klebsiella antibiotic resistance was seen against carbapenem (83.33%) in the second season of the study. In the third season of the study, Escherichia coli showed more resistance to cephalosporin compared to other antibiotics (66%). In the second season, Pseudomonas showed 100% resistance to carbapenem.
The results showed high antibiotic resistance of common pathogens against commonly used antibiotics. And due to the vulnerability of children, necessary interventions should be made to reduce the rate of NIs and control the use of antibiotics.