Evaluation of Microorganisms Causing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

The aim of this study was to identify microorganisms causing ventilator-associated pneumonia(VAP) and also study the antibiotic resistance/susceptibility.We retrospectively assessed microorganisms isolated from patients diagnosed with VAP in a pediatric intensive care unitbetween January 1, 2014, and June 30, 2016.We included 44 patients diagnosed with VAP. The prevalence thereof was 8.6 patients per 1,000 ventilator days. Mechanical ventilation was required for 56.5% of patients. Thirty-three patients (75%) died. An underlying chronic disease was detected in 75% of patients (n=33). Fifty microorganisms were isolated from 44 patients. Single microorganisms were isolated from 86.4% (n=38) and two from 13.6% (n=6) of patients. Of all the isolated bacteria, 96% (n=48) were gram-negative; the most common was Pseudomonas aeruginosa (32%), followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae (24%) and Acinetobacter baumannii(22%). The isolates were most susceptible to colistin(92.6%), followed by piperacillin-tazobactam(71.4%), amikacin(65.2%), and gentamicin (52.2%). No enterobacterium or Acinetobacterstrain was resistant to colistin; however, 13% of P. aeruginosa isolates were resistant.In VAP, it is essential to catalog antibiotic resistance patterns of bacteria present in the unit to ensure that empirical antibiotic therapy is effective.