Diabetes a risk for antimicrobial resistance?

Abstract

Background: Diabetic foot infections can cause substantial morbidity. The role of Diabetes mellitus in the antimicrobial resistance of pathogens in patients with foot infections is not well clarified. So, we compared the profile of antibiotic resistance in diabetic and non-diabetic foot ulcer infections. Objectives were to compare the antimicrobial resistance pattern in diabetic and non-diabetic lower limb infections.Methods: T Pus was isolated in 50 Diabetic and 50 non-diabetic foot ulcer infections. The organisms were isolated on specific media and antibiotic susceptibility was done by using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method.Results: The most frequent causative organism in diabetic and non-diabetics is Pseudomonas 27.5% vs 27.1%, Staphylococcus 24.1% vs 27.1%, Klebsiella 24.1% vs 22.03%, E. coli 10.3% vs 10.16%, Proteus 5.17% vs 5.08%. No significant differences in resistance rates to Amikacin, Penicillin, Ofloxacin, Vancomycin, Piperacillin + Tazobactum were observed between diabetic and non-diabetic patients. There is significant difference in resistance to Ampicillin (p=0.017).Conclusions: Diabetes per se does not seem to influence the susceptibility pattern to antimicrobials in our group of patients with foot ulcer infections.