title: Retrospective analysis of antibiotic susceptibility patterns of respiratory isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a Turkish University Hospital.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Lower respiratory tract infections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa have a high mortality rate. Antibacterial activity of various antibiotics against P. aeruginosa isolated from each hospital depends on the variety or amount of antibiotics used in each hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 249 respiratory isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Sivas (Turkey) were included between January-1999 and January-2002. Isolates were tested against 14 different antibiotics by a disc diffusion method or standardized microdilution technique.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Organisms were cultured from the following specimens: sputum (31.3%), transtracheal/endotracheal aspirates (37.8%), and bronchial lavage (30.9%). Isolates in bronchial lavage were highly susceptible to cefoperazone and aminoglycosides. Resistance to ampicillin/sulbactam was 98.8%, ticarcillin 40.1%, ticarcillin/clavulanic acid 11.2%, piperacillin 21.8%, aztreonam 66.6%, cefotaxim 75.4%, ceftriaxone 84.2%, cefoperazone 39.0%, ceftazidime 50.8%, gentamicin 57.5%, tobramycin 58.4%, amikacin 25.4%, ciprofloxacin 16.1%, and imipenem/cilastatin 21.6%. The term multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa covered resistance to imipenem, ciprofloxacin, ceftazidime, gentamicin, and piperacillin. 1.2% of isolates were multidrug-resistant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest that amikacin resistance increases progressively in Turkey. Piperacillin and ticarcillin/clavulanate were the most active agents against both imipenem- and ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates in our region.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chest Diseases, Cumhuriyet University Medical School, Sivas, Turkey. gonlugur@e-kolay.net
authors.forename: Ugur
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Gonlugur
authors.forename: Mustafa Zahir
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Bakici
authors.forename: Levent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ozdemir
authors.forename: Ibrahim
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Akkurt
authors.forename: Serhat
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Icagasioglu
authors.forename: Fusun
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gultekin