Abstract
Background : To investigate the distribution of bacterial pathogens of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in hospitalized elderly patients during the COVID-19 epidemic and to explore the influence of COVID-19 on the distribution of bacterial pathogens, in order to provide guidance for clinical diagnosis.
Methods : Specimens of sputum from elderly LRTIs patients at Fuding Hospital of China were collected from October 2022 to January 2023. Cultures and identification were done, and RT-PCR was employed to detect SARS-Cov-2 nucleic acid.
Results : A total of 195 isolates were characterized in 163 sputum samples of consecutive hospitalized elderly patients, of which 11.3% were Gram-positive bacteria and 88.7% Gram-negative. The top of frequently isolated pathogens were Klebsiella pneumonia (30.3%),Pseudomonas aeruginosa (19.0%), Acinetobacter baumannii(12.8%), Stenotrophomonas maltophili , (7.7%), Escherichia coli (7.2%). According to the results of novel coronavirus nucleic acid detection, the 163 patients were divided into COVID-19 group and non-COVID control (CNT) group. The comparison of bacterial distribution between the groups revealed that Stenotrophomonas maltophilia was lower in the COVID-19 than in the CNT group, while Acinetobacter baumannii was higher in the COVID-19 group, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05 ).
Conclusion : The major bacteria identified in sputum culture of hospitalized elderly patients were Klebsiella pneumonia , Pseudomonas aeruginosa ,Acinetobacter baumannii , Stenotrophomonas maltophilia , andEscherichia coli . Furthermore, the distribution ofStenotrophomonas maltophilia and Acinetobacter baumanniibetween the COVID-19 and CNT groups was found to be significantly different (P < 0.05), while there were no significant differences in the distribution of other bacteria.