Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia (PAB) is associated with high mortality and morbidity rates, but the outcome for patients with PAB has not been recently well evaluated.
Methods: Between 1997 and 1999, all episodes of PAB at the Hôtel-Dieu de France University Hospital, Lebanon, were analyzed to evaluate the outcome for patients with PAB.
Results: Fifty-five episodes of PAB in 53 patients (26 episodes in men and 29 in women) were analyzed. The mean age of the patients in the cohort was 60.7 years (range: 18-89 years). The mean time between the onset of hospitalization and the first episode of PAB was 21 days (range: 0-77 days). Most of the tested isolates showed favorable in vitro susceptibility to ceftazidime (85%), amikacin (77%) and imipenem (67%). The overall in-hospital cumulative survival was 89% at one week and 49% at 2 months. Among the variables analyzed, four were statistically associated with a higher mortality rate: prior use of antimicrobials (85% vs 54%), use of systemic steroids (49% vs 36%), intubation (67% vs 32%), and admission to the intensive care unit (74% vs 39%) (P < .05).
Conclusion: Hospitalized patients with PAB have low survival rates. Newer strategies for prevention and treatment are crucial.