Prevalence and Trends of Carbapenem-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter Species Isolated from Clinical Specimens at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: A Retrospective Analysis

PURPOSE: Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter species and P. aeruginosa are the leading cause of nosocomial infections. Therefore, the objective of this study was to analyze the prevalence, antimicrobial susceptibility profile, and trends of carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa and Acinetobacter species isolated from clinical specimens. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included data from Ethiopian Public Health Institute from 2017 to 2021. BD phoenix M50, Vitek 2 compact, and conventional identification methods were used to identify the organisms. The Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion, BD phoenix M50, and Vitek 2 compact methods were used to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of the isolates. Chi-square for linear trends using Epi Info was employed to test the significance of carbapenem resistance trends over time. The p-values of ≤0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Following data cleaning, 7110 reports were used. Out of this, (N=185, 2.6%) and (N=142, 2%), Acinetobacter species and P. aeruginosa were isolated, respectively. Twenty-four Acinetobacter species and fourteen P. aeruginosa species were omitted because carbapenem antimicrobial agents were not tested for them. The overall prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter species and P. aeruginosa were 61% and 22%, respectively. The prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter species increased significantly from 50% in 2017 to 76.2% in 2021 (p=0.013). The trend of carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa was fluctuating (p=0.99). Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter had a lower resistance rate to amikacin (44%) and tobramycin (55%); similarly, carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa had a lower resistance rate to amikacin (27%) and tobramycin (47%). CONCLUSION: This study revealed a high prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter species and P. aeruginosa, both of which showed better sensitivity to amikacin and tobramycin. Furthermore, Acinetobacter species showed a statistically significant increasing trend in carbapenem resistance.