Prevalence and Pattern of Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamases (ESBL) Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae in Biological Specimen at a Tertiary Hospital

Aim: The study was carried out to assess the distribution and pattern of ESBL producing Klesbsiella pneumoniae in specimen analysed at the Microbiology laboratory of a tertiary healthcare center.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Rivers state, Nigeria carried out between January 2019 to June 2019

Methods: Clinical specimen including blood, wound biopsy/aspirate, urine and sputum specimens were collected and processed according to standard methods. Blood agar, Cysteine Lactose Electrolyte Deficient agar (CLED) and MacConkey agar were used to culture the specimens to isolate K. pneumoniae. A confirmatory test was carried out on all suspected ESBL isolates using combination disks according to the CLSI guidelines.

Results: The study reports a prevalence rate of 34.7% (118/340) for ESBL-production among K. pneumoniae isolates in UPTH, Port Harcourt. Blood culture was found to have the highest proportion of ESBL K. pneumoniae (57.1%) while urine samples had the least proportion of ESBL K. pneumoniae growth (32.5%). There was no significant distribution of ESBL K. pneumoniae growth by age groups or gender among the patients sampled. However, the occurrence of ESBL K. pneumoniae was higher among in-patients (37.0%) compared to outpatients (28.7%).

Conclusion: The growth of ESBL K. pneumoniae was observed to be higher among inpatient subject indicative of the likelihood of high prevalence ESBL K. pneumoniae in hospital acquired infection. Therefore, there is a great need for urgent interventions in the areas of antimicrobial usage and infection prevention and control in our settings.