Descriptive statistics are an important part of biomedical research which is used to describe the basic features of the data in the study. They provide simple summaries about the sample and the measures. Measures of the central tendency and dispersion are used to describe the quantitative data. For the continuous data, test of the normality is an important step for deciding the measures of central tendency and statistical methods for data analysis. When our data follow normal distribution, parametric tests otherwise nonparametric methods are used to compare the groups. There are different methods used to test the normality of data, including numerical and visual methods, and each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. In the present study, we have discussed the summary measures and methods used to test the normality of the data.

BACKGROUND:Carbapenems show excellent activity against resistant uropathogens, and they are the antibiotics of choice for urinary tract infections (UTIs). The choice of carbapenem prescription is strongly influenced by antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) report. With the publication of recent AST guidelines by the European Committee on AST (EUCAST), we were curious to evaluate the difference in results between Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) and the EUCAST guidelines for the interpretation of carbapenems.METHODS:During a period of 1 year, midstream urine specimens received in the laboratory were cultured by conventional techniques and 2932 of them grew significant colony counts of Escherichia coli. Out of them, 501 E. coli isolates which were resistant to at least six first-line antibiotics were further subjected to second-line antimicrobials imipenem and meropenem, reported by E-tests (bioMerieux, France). The E-test results were interpreted by both CLSI 2016 and EUCAST 6.0 (2016) guidelines. Weighted kappa was used to determine absolute agreement, and McNemar's Chi-square test was used to test the difference in proportions of susceptibility between two methods, respectively.RESULTS:Taking CLSI guidelines as a gold standard, there was 100% sensitivity in a susceptible category by the EUCAST guidelines for both the carbapenems. Weighted kappa showed good and moderate agreement between them for imipenem and meropenem, respectively. However, McNemar Chi-square test in the nonsusceptible category between the two tests was 9.38% and 33.03% for imipenem and meropenem, respectively, and they were highly significant (P < 0.001).CONCLUSIONS:A laboratory can follow EUCAST guidelines as well and the guidelines are more useful in urinary concentrated antibiotics such as carbapenems. Further other antibiotics need to be evaluated by both these guidelines.

Introduction. Species of the genus Chryseobacterium are emerging healthcare-associated pathogens, often colonizing the hospital environment. There are no clear guidelines available for antimicrobial susceptibility of this organism. In this report we present the first case, to our knowledge, of simultaneous central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) due to Chryseobacterium gleum from India. Case presentation. A 62 years old man with a history of a road traffic accident 1 month previously was referred to our center for further management. He developed features of sepsis and aspiration pneumonia on day 3 of admission. Four blood cultures (two each from central and peripheral lines) and two tracheal aspirate cultures grew pure yellow colonies of bacteria. Both matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry, (MALDI-TOF MS; bioMérieux, Marcy-L'Etoile, France,) and BD Phoenix (BD Biosciences, Maryland, USA) identified the organism as C. gleum. However, BD Phoenix failed to provide MIC breakpoints. The isolates of C. gleum both from blood and tracheal aspirate showed identical susceptibility patterns: resistant to cephalosporins and carbapenems and susceptible to ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, amikacin, trimethoprim+sulfamethoxazole, piperacillin–tazobactam, cefoperazone–sulbactam, doxycycline, minocycline and vancomycin. Following levofloxacin therapy, the fever responded within 48 h and procalcitonin levels decreased without removal of the central line or endotracheal tube. However, the patient developed sudden cardiac arrest on day 10 of treatment and could not be resuscitated. Conclusion. Rapid and accurate identification of C. gleum in the laboratory, preferably based on MALDI-TOF, is essential for guiding therapy. C. gleum responds well to fluoroquinolones without the need to remove indwelling catheters.

Pandoraea apista is a novel gram-negative bacillus usually isolated from respiratory specimens of cystic fibrosis patients. Few cases of bacteremia have also been reported due to this rare pathogen. Emergence of multidrug-resistant isolates of this bacillus is of grave concern. Here, we report a very interesting and unusual case of Pandoraea apista bacteremia in a coronavirus disease (COVID)–positive elderly diabetic man suffering from pneumonia. Prompt isolation and antibiotic sensitivity testing guided the patient’s treatment and yielded favorable outcome. The need of automated methods for identification and sensitivity testing limits the reporting of this rare but important pathogen in hospital settings. Detailed research work and studies are needed in this direction to better understand this pathogen and its clinical manifestations for better patient outcome.

Elizabethkingia sp. is an opportunistic nosocomially acquired Gram-negative bacterium usually implicated in isolated cases of meningitis, pneumonia, bacteraemia and sepsis. It is a sturdy pathogen, resistant to most of the first-line antibiotics routinely used in laboratories for other Gram-negative pathogens. The current study was planned to assess the demographic profile, clinical picture, sensitivity patterns and species identification of various Elizabethkingia isolates, as well as to follow up cases of infection. All clinical samples of blood, cerebrospinal fluid and respiratory specimens positive for Elizabethkingia during a 2-year period were included in the study. The isolates were first identified with a Vitek-2 GN card system and further confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Follow-up visits of the patients with their demographic records, morbidities and treatment outcomes were also planned and studied. Over a period of 2 years, samples from 27 individuals showed positive growth of Elizabethkingia spp. Among these 27 individuals, 19 were adults and 8 were neonates. Blood samples yielded most isolates (52.6%; n = 10); followed by tracheal aspirate, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and cerebrospinal fluid. Eleven out of 27 patients (40.7%) showed concomitant growth of other pathogens along with Elizabethkingia spp . ; predominantly Gram-negative organisms. Both species of Elizabethkingia showed 100% susceptibility to drugs such as minocycline and piperacillin-tazobactam . A favourable outcome was seen in 76.9% of the individuals with timely institution of antibiotics and proper diagnosis. Bloodstream infections and meningitis were identified as the most common clinical conditions associated with mortality. Infections due to Elizabethkingia are on the rise in developing countries like India. As a result there is an urgent need to study this pathogen in greater detail to understand its pathogenesis, clinical implications and treatment outcomes, especially in hospital settings such as intensive care units.