Enterobacter bacteremia: Clinical features, risk factors for multiresistance and mortality in a Chinese University Hospital.

BACKGROUND: This study was performed to characterize the clinical features and to identify the risk factors for multiresistance and mortality in patients with Enterobacter bacteremia.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A number of 126 patients with Enterobacter bacteremia in 1995-2004 at the Medical university-affiliated Hospital of Anhui, China were retrospectively analyzed.

RESULTS: Of the 126 cases of bacteremia, 81 (64.3%) patients were identified as nosocomial infection. The overall multiresistance rate was 45.2% (57/126). Multiresistance was associated with nosocomial infection, recent invasive procedure, previous third-generation cephalosporins therapy, prolonged perioperative prophylaxis, the species of Enterobacter (E. cloacae) and polymicrobial bacteremia in univariate analysis. In multivariate analysis, previous third-generation cephalosporins therapy (OR = 13.6, p = 0.007) and prolonged perioperative prophylaxis (OR = 6.4, p = 0.029) were the strong, independent risk factors for the multiresistance. The crude 30-day mortality rate was 39.7% (50/126). Mortality directly attributed to Enterobacter spp. was 32.5% (41/126), which was significantly associated with multiresistance, nosocomial infection, recent invasive procedure, and inadequately empirical therapy in univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis revealed that only nosocomial infection (OR = 3.292, p = 0.049) was independently associated with mortality. The survival curve showed that the inappropriate initial therapy group had a lower probability of survival than the appropriate therapy group in infection-related mortality (Log Rank, p = 0.0142).

CONCLUSION: Enterobacter is becoming increasingly important nosocomial pathogens. Nosocomial infection is a clinical risk factor tightly associated with multiresistance and worse outcome. More judicious use of third-generation cephalosporins may decrease the incidence of nosocomial multiresistant Enterobacter spp. in China.