Saudi Arabian-American differences in antimicrobial resistance of Escherichia, Klebsiella, and Pseudomonas

Increasing microbial resistance to newly developed antibiotics has been a limiting factor in the therapeutic use of these agents. To determine the extent of the problem, in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of 7,140 clinical isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa to seven commonly used antibiotics was established at the 1,700-bed Riyadh Central Hospital in Saudi Arabia and compared with 5,513 isolates at the Oklahoma Memorial Hospital and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at Riyadh Central Hospital were generally more resistant to ampicillin, carbenicillin, gentamicin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole than those at Oklahoma Memorial Hospital and the Veterans Administration Medical Center. All 1,022 isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae at Oklahoma Memorial Hospital were more sensitive to the antibiotics than those at Riyadh Central Hospital or the Veterans Administration Medical Center. The sensitivity pattern of Klebsiella pneumoniae at Riyadh Central Hospital and the Veterans Administration Medical Centers was similar.