Asian Journal of Medicine and Health

Burn wound infections are serious complications of burn injuries which if not treated on time can lead to systemic infections, sepsis and even loss of life. The aim of this study was to assess common and facultative bacteria in patientts with burn wounds in some Hospitals in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Swab and biopsy samples were aseptically collected using sterile swab sticks and scapels and aseptically inoculated onto Chocolate, Blood and McConkey agar plates and Robertson’s cooked meat broth. The Chocolate blood agar was inoculated at 37⁰C under CO₂ enriched atmosphere while blood, McConkey agar plates and Robertson’s cooked meat broth was incubated aerobically at 37⁰C for 24-48 hrs. Organisms were identified using standard microbiological techniques based on cultural, morphological and biochemical attributes of the isolates. A total of 115(one hundred and fifteen) burn wound samples were analysed in this study comprising 65 males (56.52%) and 50 females (43.48%). Total number of organisms isolated were 135 which include Staphylococcus aureus 45(33.33%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa 35(25.93%), Klebsiella pneumonia 22(16.30%), Proteus mirabilis 12(8.89%), Escherichia coli 9(6.67%), Staphylococcus epidermidis 8(5.93%), beta haemolytic Streptococcus 4(2.96). Male patients had higher incidence of 81(60%) than the female patients 54(40%), also the age brackets of 20-28, 29-37, and 38-46 had the highest number of burn wound isolates. The antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of the isolates showed Ceptazidime with the highest susceptibility to the isolates 95(73.1%) followed by Ciprofloxacin 89(68.5%). Burn wound patients’ management and care should be done with optimal aseptic standard procedures and good infection control measures should be put in place. Healthcare providers should also ensure proper hand washing, avoid cross contamination, adopt pre- and post- operative standard techniques in patient care and management.