Species, Risk Factors, and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profiles of Bacterial Isolates from HIV-Infected Patients Suspected to Have Pneumonia in Mekelle Zone, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Pneumonia is a condition, where bacterial infections are implicated as the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in humans. The actual burden of HIV-infected patients with pneumonia is not well documented in Mekelle region of Ethiopia. This study estimated the prevalence of bacterial pneumonia in HIV patients, antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of pathogens implicated in pneumonia, and associated risk factors in Mekelle zone, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, during August-December 2016. METHODS: Sputum specimens were collected from 252 HIV seropositive individuals with suspected pneumonia. Data on sociodemographics and risk factors were also collected using a structured questionnaire. Blood, Chocolate, and Mac Conkey agar plates (Oxoid, Hampshire, UK) were used to grow the isolates. The isolated colonies were identified based on Gram stain, colony morphology, pigmentation, hemolysis, and biochemical tests. The antimicrobial susceptibility test was performed using the modified Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. The analysis was performed using SPSS version 22 and p-value < 0.05 with corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Out of the 252 samples, 110 (43.7%) were positive for various bacterial species. The predominant bacterial species were Klebsiella pneumoniae (n=26, 23.6 %) followed by Streptococcus pneumoniae (n=17, 15.5 %), Escherichia coli (n=16, 14.5%), Klebsiella spp. (n=15, 13.6%), Staphylococcus aureus (n=9, 8.2%), Enterobacter spp. (n=7, 6.3%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (4, n=3.6%), Proteus spp. (n=4, 3.6%), Citrobacter freundii (n=7, 6.3%), Streptococcus pyogenes (3, 2.7%), and Haemophilus influenzae (n=2, 1.8%). Young age (18-29), recent CD4(+) count less than 350 cells/mL, alcohol consumption, and HIV WHO stage II showed significant association with the occurrence of bacterial pneumonia. Resistance to penicillin, co-trimoxazole, and tetracycline was observed in 81.8%, 39.8%, and 24.5% of the isolates, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The problem of pneumonia among HIV patients was significant in the study area. The high prevalence of drug-resistant bacteria isolated from the patient's samples possesses a health risk in immunocompromised HIV patients. There is a need to strengthen and expand culture and susceptibility procedures for the administration of appropriate therapy to improve patients management and care which may aid in decreasing the mortality.