Background Enteric fever is a systemic infection caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A, B, and C. There is an emergence of Typhoid fever caused by extensively drug-resistant Salmonella Typhi strain called XDR S.Typhi. This strain is resistant to recommended first-line antibiotics and cephalosporins. WHO estimated 5274 cases of XDR S.Typhi in Karachi from November 2016 to December 2019. This study aims to determine clinical course, complications and response to treatment of XDR S.Typhi among the pediatric population coming to Indus Hospital. Method We reviewed the records of children who had culture-proven XDR S.Typhi infection at Indus Hospital from July 2017 to December 2018. A pre-designed data abstraction form was used to record information about seasonality, demographic details, clinical features and course, treatment, complications and outcomes of the cases of XDR S.Typhi. Results The records of 680 children were reviewed. The median (IQR) age of the patients was 5 (2–8) years. More than half (n = 391, 57.5%) of the patients were males. The outcomes were recorded in 270 (40%) patients. Out of these, 234 (86.7%) children got cured within 14 days, while a delayed response to antibiotics was noted in 32 (11.9%) children. Seventy-six (29%) children recovered on a combination of meropenem and azithromycin, 72 (27%) got cured on azithromycin alone, while 15 (6%) responded to meropenem alone. Conclusion Our review indicated that children under 5 years of age were affected more with XDR S.Typhi. Azithromycin alone or in combination with meropenem were effective antibiotics for treating XDR S.Typhi in children.

Objectives: To find the association between consanguinity and frequency of b-thalassemia and to assess the knowledge of parents regarding disease as well as inclination towards premarital carrier screening  (PMCS), pre natal diagnosis, pre conception genetic counseling. Study Design: A retrospective cohort study. Setting: Patients with beta thalassemia attending Fatimid Foundation and PNS Shifa Hospital, Karachi. Period: Six Months July – December, 2017. Materials and Methods: Data was collected by pre tested questionnaire which include basic demographic profile, frequency of consanguineous marriages and knowledge regarding disease from parents of children suffering from thalassemia. The study was approved by ethical review committee. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 21. Chi square test was applied. Results: Data was collected from 200 study participants including parents of thalassemia. Males were 52% and 48% were the females. 78.5% were relatives (p=0.001) out of these related, first degree relatives were 61% and 17.5% were distant relatives (p 0.009). Only 25% were aware of genetic counseling, 65% know that thalassemia had genetic mode of transmission (p=0.005), 24% were aware of screening modalities available for thalassemic patients (p=0.001). About 63.55% agreed that premarital screening can prevent thalassemia (p=0.001), majority (83%) of parents were not aware of pre natal diagnosis of thalassemia (p=0.001) more than half of study participants (52%) were still in favor of cousin marriages in future. Conclusion: Thalassemia was found most prevalent among first degree familial relatives. Parents have inadequate knowledge regarding disease. Lack of knowledge and trends consanguineous marriages are strong contributory factor for causation of disease.

Background and Objective: Unceasing rise in cases of enteric fever, in particular extensively drug resistant (XDR) strain of Salmonella enterica, has led to a growing threat, leaving only carbapenems and azithromycin as the precious option. In this regard, we determined the burden and clinical course of XDR salmonella in comparison to multidrug-resistant (MDR) and drug sensitive (DS) strains. Methods: A retrospective chart review of 1515 Salmonella Typhi (S.typhi) culture positive patients was conducted at Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi from July 2017 to December 2018. Results: During our study, we observed children at the age of 5-6 years and adults at the age of 20-22 years were the chief targets of S.typhi. Further, we witnessed a rapid shift of drug resistance from MDR to XDR over the one year of study. Almost all patients presented with fever. However other signs and symptoms like malaise, body aches, anorexia, diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain were more common in XDR Typhoid patients. Further, the need of hospitalization, total hospital stay and mortality was also greater for XDR typhoid patients. Conclusion: There is a crucial requirement for consolidated steps to curtail the spread of XDR Salmonella tyhi disease as its management is challenging, and it is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.ICON-2022.5789 How to cite this:Herekar F, Sarfaraz S, Imran M, Ghouri N, Shahid S, Mahesar M. Clinical spectrum and outcomes of patients with different resistance patterns of Salmonella enterica . Pak J Med Sci. 2022;38(2):356-361. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.ICON-2022.5789 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Background: Enteric fever is a systemic infection, which can be caused by Salmonella enterica; Typhi and Paratyphi A. Over time, Salmonella Typhi has developed resistance to antibiotics resulting in the emergence of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) enteric fever. WHO estimated 5274 cases of XDR Enteric fever in Karachi from November 2016 to December 2019. This study aims to determine clinical course, complications and outcomes of XDR enteric fever among the pediatric population coming to Indus HospitalMethods: A retrospective chart review of pediatric patients (aged one month to 15 years) seen in Indus Hospital between July 2017 to December 2018 was conducted. A pre-designed data abstraction form was used to record detailed information about seasonality and distribution of cases, demographic details, signs and symptoms, clinical course, treatment, complications and outcomes of the cases treated for XDR Enteric feverResults: Six hundred and eighty children were included in the study. The median (IQR) age of the patients was 5 (2-8) years. More than half (n=391, 57.5%) of the patients were males. Most common clinical manifestations included fever, vomiting and diarrhea, noted in 680 (100%), 242 (35%) and 174 (25%) patients. Outcomes of 270 (39.7%) patients were recorded. Others were lost to follow up [351 (51.6%)], referred out [52 (7.6%)] or left against medical advice [7 (1%)]. 266 (39.1%) patients were cured, and four children (0.6%) expired. Seventy-eight patients (82%) and 15 patients (16.3%) got cured on Azithromycin and Meropenem alone while 157 on a combination of drugs.Conclusion: Our review indicated that children under five years of age were affected more with XDR Enteric fever. Meropenem and Azithromycin, either alone or in combination were the most effective antibiotics for treating XDR Enteric fever in children coming to Indus hospital