•  
  •  
 

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine the identity of microorganisms isolated from patients diagnosed with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). METHODS: We reviewed cases diagnosed with SBP over a 14-year period. The medical records of 780 SBP-diagnosed patients with decompensated cirrhosis and ascites admitted to Tangdu Hospital, Xian, Shaanxi Province, China were retrospectively reviewed between January 1996 and December 2009. The patients were placed into 2 groups, and the clinical data were compared between the 2 groups. Ascitic fluid was collected from these patients and cultured for bacteria using the MicroScan WalkAway 40 system. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the ratio of pathogens between group A (48 patients, from January 1996 to December 2002) and group B (50 patients, from January 2003 to December 2009) (x2=9.630, p=0.002). The SBP patients with gram-positive bacteria needed significantly more antibiotics within 30 days compared to those with gram-negative bacteria (x2=12.285, p=0.000). CONCLUSION: In recent years, the types of isolated pathogens have significantly changed in northern China. Such changes have also been observed in other countries and have been attributed to long-term antibiotic therapy and invasive procedures. Changes in the epidemiology of pathogens that cause SBP must be monitored for optimal treatment.

Article Type

Research Article

First Page

1152

Last Page

1156

Download

Share

COinS