Sreedharan Nair

An appraisal of antibiotic sensitivity pattern and drug utilization in burn patients

Aim: To analyze the antibiotic sensitivity and resistance pattern and antibiotic consumption in defined daily dose (DDD)/100 bed days (BD). Materials and Methods: Burns patients admitted from January 2013 to December 2013 were identified retrospectively from medical record department registry using the International Classification of Diseases-(ICD) Codes T 30.1-39.9. Patient demographics, total body surface area (TBSA) of burn, treatment chart, hospitalization days, and antibiotic sensitivity/resistance profile were recorded. Cumulative sensitivity/resistance pattern of isolated microorganisms against various antibiotics was calculated (in percentage) from culture sensitivity reports. Total use of antibiotics in burn patients was calculated as DDD/100 BD using antibiotic consumption calculator-WHO ABC Calc version 3.1. Results: Of total 159 burn patients, the main cause of burns in these patients was thermal (81.8%). Cefoperazone-sulbactam (54.7%) was the most frequently prescribed antibiotic followed by amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (34%). Totally, 82 bacterial isolates were obtained, among which Pseudomonas aeruginosa (31.6%) was the most common organism. P. aeruginosa was sensitive to rifampicin and erythromycin but resistant to clindamycin. The DDD/100 BD was highest for parenteral cefoperazone (40.21). Conclusion: Proper antibiogram and DDD will facilitate conceptualizing and developing drug policies for improved patient outcomes in burns.