Abstract

Background: The misuse of antibiotics leads to antimicrobial resistance, particularly concerning infections related to orthopedic implants. The aim of this study was to determine the sensitivity pattern of bacterial isolates in patients with orthopedic implants having infections.
Materials and methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at Ghurki Trust Teaching Hospital, Lahore. Culture sensitivity reports from 548 patients were collected between January 2020 and March 2023. Patient demographics, including age, sex, culture specimens (blood, wound, etc.), and antibiotic sensitivity were recorded.
Results: Seven types of implants were analyzed, with Ilizarov (25.5%) being the most infected external implant and nails (24.7%) the most infected internal implant. The study included 10 clinically significant bacteria, with Staphylococcus aureus (n = 195, 35.5%) being the most common Gram-positive pathogen, and Escherichia coli (n = 99, 18.0%) being the most prevalent Gram-negative pathogen. A total of 40 antibiotics were tested; amoxicillin was the least effective, whereas linezolid, vancomycin, and fosfomycin showed the highest efficacy against all implant-related infections included in this study.
Conclusion: The critical challenges of antimicrobial resistance in orthopedic implant-related infections have been highlighted. Urgent institutional and policy level interventions are required for implementation of stringent infection control protocols and robust antibiotic stewardship programs to prevent a post-antibiotic crisis.

Author Details

Authors

• Hajira Nazeer^{1, 2}
• Humaira Majeed Khan¹
• Muhammad Abdul Hannan³
• Sadaf Zulfiqar⁴
• Bazgha Gul¹
• Majid Alhomrani^{5, 6}
• Abdulhakeem S. Alamri^{5, 6}
• Walaa F. Alsanie^{5, 6}
• Muhammad Usman⁷

Departments

• ¹ Institute of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Allied Health Sciences, Lahore College for Women University,
• ² Ghurki Trust Teaching Hospital, Lahore,
• ³ Khawaja Muhammad Safdar Medical College Sialkot, Sialkot,
• ⁴ NPD & Regulatory Affairs, Pacific Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Multan Road, Lahore, Pakistan,
• ⁵ Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, The Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences,
• ⁶ Research Center for Health Sciences, Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia, and
• ⁷ Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

Address

Muhammad Usman, PhD
Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences
University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences
Lahore 5400, Pakistan
Email: [email protected]

Citation