Bacterial uropathogens causing late onset sepsis in neonates at a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To find out different bacterial isolates of urinary tract infection (UTI) in neonates with late onset sepsis (LOS) at a tertiary care hospital. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Department of Pediatrics, Nishtar Hospital Multan. Period: August 2020 to February 2021. Material & Methods: A total of 176 neonates with LOS and culture positive UTI were enrolled. The urine samples were sent to the institutional laboratory for isolation and identification of the causative agents. Baseline information like age, gender, socioeconomic status, family system and maternal literacy were noted. Once registered, the urine samples were sent to the laboratory of the hospital for isolation and identification of the causative agents. Urine samples were collected within 48 hours of admission. Results: Of the 176 neonates, 110 (62.5%) were male while 66 (37.5%) were female. Overall, mean age was 8.64±5.22 days. There were 90 (51.1%) neonates who belonged to rural areas and 86 (48.9%) to urban areas. Poor socioeconomic status was noted in 116 (65.9%) neonates. In terms of maternal literacy, 118 (67.0%) mothers were illiterate. Overall, mean gestational age was 38.59 ± 2.17 weeks. Escherichia coli (E. coli) was the predominant causative organism noted among 146 (83.0%) neonates whereas Klebsiella was seen in 23 (13.1%) while other bacterial isolates were Proteus 2 (1.1%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1 (0.6%), Enterobacter aerogenes 1 (0.6%), Enterococcus fecalis 1 (0.6%), Staphylococcus aureus 1 (0.6%) and Group B Streptococcus 1 (0.6%). Conclusion: High frequency of Escherichia coli was observed followed by Klebsiella among neonates having urinary tract infection presenting with late onset of sepsis in our study.