J Korean Child Neurol Soc.  2010 Nov;18(2):244-253.

Causative Organisms and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Bacterial Meningitis in Children: Experience of a Single Center

• Kim MK
• Lee EH
• Yum MS
• Jeong MH
• Ko TS

Abstract

PURPOSE
This study was performed to investigate the change in the causative organisms of bacterial meningitis and the prevalence of bacterial meningitis caused by antibiotics resistant strains in a single Korean tertiary center.
METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed medical records of patients who had been diagnosed with bacterial meningitis from March 1999 to March 2010 at the Asan Medical Center. The bacterial meningitis was defined as the correlated clinical symptoms and the isolation of organisms from the cerebrospinal fluid culture.
RESULTS
During the 11-year study period, we found 81 cases of CSF-culture proven bacterial meningitis. Streptococcus agalactiae (group B streptococcus, GBS) were most common bacteria accounting for 23 (28.3%) cases, followed by Streptococcus pneumoniae with 22 (27.2%), and Haemophilus influenzae with 8 (9.9%). After introduction of the vaccination, only one case of H. influenzae meningitis was documented. Seventeen of 18 (94.4%) cases of GBS were sensitive to the penicillin, whereas 82.4% (14/17) of S. pneumoniae were resistant to penicillin. Among the 17 cases of S. pneumoniae, 11 cases (64.7%) were multi-drug resistant strains but all were susceptible to vancomycin.
CONCLUSION
In spite of the introduction of the vaccination, S. pneumoniae was the most common cause of bacterial meningitis in children older than two months. For pneumococcal meningitis, careful selection of antibiotics and ongoing research about antibiotics susceptibility will be needed due to multi-drug resistance.

Keyword

Bacterial meningitis; Streptococcus agalactiae; Streptococcus pneumoniae; Drug resistance; Microbial

MeSH Terms

Accounting
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Bacteria
Child
Drug Resistance
Drug Resistance, Multiple
Haemophilus influenzae
Humans
Influenza, Human
Medical Records
Meningitis
Meningitis, Bacterial
Meningitis, Pneumococcal
Penicillins
Pneumonia
Prevalence
Retrospective Studies
Streptococcus
Streptococcus agalactiae
Streptococcus pneumoniae
Vaccination
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Penicillins