Prevalence and Clinical Characteristics of Bacterial Pneumonia in Neurosurgical Emergency Center Patients: A Retrospective Study Spanning 13 Years at a Tertiary Center

Abstract

Patients with brain injuries are at a heightened susceptibility to bacterial pneumonia, and the timely initiation of empiric antibiotic treatment has been shown to substantially reduce mortality rates. Nevertheless, there is a need for knowledge regarding the resistance and prevalence of pulmonary bacterial infections in this patient population. To address this gap, a retrospective study was conducted at a neurosurgical emergency center, focusing on patients with brain injuries. Among the entire patient population, a total of 739 individuals (18.23%) were identified as having bacterial pneumonia, consisting of 1489 strains of Gram-negative bacteria and 205 strains of Gram-positive bacteria. The resistance of Klebsiella pneumoniae to imipenem exhibited a significant increase, rising from 21.74% in 2009 to 96.67% in 2018, and subsequently reaching 48.47% in 2021. Acinetobacter baumannii displayed resistance rates exceeding 80.0% against multiple antibiotics. The resistance profile of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was relatively low. The proportion of Staphylococcus aureus reached its peak at 18.70% in 2016, but experienced a decline to 7.83% in 2021. The abundance of Gram-negative bacteria exceeded that of Gram-positive bacteria by a factor of 5.96. Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Staphylococcus aureus are prominent pathogens characterized by limited antibiotic choices and scarce treatment alternatives for the isolated strains.

Oral administration of lysozyme protects against injury of ileum via modulating gut microbiota dysbiosis after severe traumatic brain injury

“…In addition, the gastrointestinal tract serves as a significant reservoir for multidrug-resistant bacteria ( Corriero et al., 2022 ). Clinical study has demonstrated that Enterobacteriaceae predominantly constitute the bacterial population responsible for lung infections in patients with brain injuries ( Yang et al., 2023 ). Furthermore, TBI often coexists with intestinal barrier dysfunction and dysbiosis, thereby creating opportunities for the translocation of gut bacteria ( Yang et al., 2022 ).…”