Abstract:
OBJECTIVE To explore the differences in virulence genes, capsular serotypes, string tests, clinical characteristics, prognosis and drug susceptibility between hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) and classic Klebsiella pneumoniae (cKP) strains.
METHODS K. pneumoniae (KP) strains clinically isolated from the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College from Nov. 1, 2022 to Oct. 31, 2023 were collected, along with the clinical data of the patients. Drug susceptibility tests and string tests were conducted, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect virulence genes (rmpA, iucA, peg-344) and capsular serotypes (K1, K2, K5, K20, K57).
RESULTS A total of 207 KP strains were isolated, including 170 community-associated infections (82.12%), of which 135 were hvKP (79.41%) and 35 were cKP (20.59%). Totally 37(17.87%) strains caused health care-associated infections, of which 29 were hvKP (78.38%) and 8 were cKP (21.63%). In terms of prognosis, cKP had a higher treatment failure rate with a statistically significant difference (P<0.05). There were 13 cases of liver abscess, all caused by hvKP, with the main capsular serotypes being K2 (30.77%) and K1 (23.07%). The positive rate of the string test in hvKP (78.66%) was higher than that in the cKP group (16.28%) with a statistically significant difference (P<0.001). The majority of hvKP strains were positive for all three virulence genes (70.12%), with the main capsular serotypes being K1 (22.56%), K2 (19.51%) and K57 (15.24%). The resistance rates of hvKP to commonly used antibacterial agents were lower than those of the cKP group. A total of 7 strains (4.27%) of carbapenem-resistant hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (HCKP) were detected.
CONCLUSIONS Both community-associated and hospital-associated hvKP have high detection rates. There are no significant differences in clinical characteristics between hvKP and cKP, but the prognosis is worse in the cKP group. All liver abscesses are caused by hvKP infection, with a high incidence of sepsis. The resistance rate of hvKP is lower than that of cKP, but the detection of 7 HCKP strains requires heightened vigilance from clinical and infection control personnel.