Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are some of the most common hospital-acquired infections (HAIs). Prolonged hospitalization, invasive devices such as catheters, and irrational use of antimicrobial agents are believed to be the major causes of high rates of HAIs. Infections such as pyelonephritis, urethritis, cystitis, and prostatitis are the main concerns in catheterized ICU patients. In these cases, Gram-negative bacteria are the most common bacteria. The present study was undertaken to determine the frequency, antibiograms, disease pattern, and risk factors involved in providing an advocacy recommendation to prevent CAUTI. A total of 1078 patients were admitted to the hospital ICU, out of which healthcare-associated infection was reported in 316 patients. CAUTI was reported only in 70 patients. Klebsiella pneumoniae (20%) was the predominant isolate, with Serratia (3%) and Providencia (3%) species being the least common isolates in this study. The present study provides CAUTI incidence rates in a tertiary care hospital in Hail, Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, information on the risk factors of common associated CAUTI causative organisms and their antibiogram patterns are also presented. This study provides vital information that can be used to formulate an effective antibiotic stewardship program that can be implemented throughout the kingdom.

A 2-year prospective study carried out on ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) patients in the intensive care unit at a tertiary care hospital, Hail, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), revealed a high prevalence of extremely drug-resistant (XDR) Acinetobacter baumannii. About a 9% increase in the incidence rate of A. baumannii occurred in the VAP patients between 2019 and 2020 (21.4% to 30.7%). In 2019, the isolates were positive for IMP-1 and VIM-2 (31.1% and 25.7%, respectively) as detected by PCR. In comparison, a higher proportion of isolates produced NDM-1 in 2020. Here, we observed a high proportion of resistant ICU isolates towards the most common antibiotics in use. Colistin sensitivity dropped to 91.4% in the year 2020 as compared to 2019 (100%). Thus, the finding of this study has a highly significant clinical implementation in the clinical management strategies for VAP patients. Furthermore, strict implementation of antibiotic stewardship policies, regular surveillance programs for antimicrobial resistance monitoring, and screening for genes encoding drug resistance phenotypes have become imperative.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) is one of the most common hospital-acquired infections (HAIs). Prolonged hospitalization, invasive devices such as catheters, and irrational use of antimicrobial agents are believed to be the major causes of high rates of HAIs. Infections such as pyelonephritis, urethritis, cystitis, and prostatitis are the main concern in catheterized ICU patients. In these cases, Gram-negative bacteria are the most common. The present study is undertaken to determine the frequency, antibiograms, disease pattern, and risk factors involved in providing an advocacy recommendation to prevent CAUTI. A total of 1078 patients were admitted to the hospital ICU, out of which healthcare-associated infection was reported in 316 patients. CAUTI was reported only in 70 patients. Klebsiella pneumoniae (20%) was the predominant isolate, with Serratia (3%) and Providencia (3%) species as the least common in this study. The present study provides CAUTI incidence rates in a tertiary care hospital in Hail, Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, information on risk factors of CAUTI common causative organism associated, and their antibiogram patterns are also presented. This study provides vital information that can be used to formulate an effective antibiotic stewardship program that can be implemented throughout the kingdom.