Bacteriological Profile of Clinical Isolates from COVID-19 Hospitalised and Non-Hospitalised Patients in Bloemfontein

Abstract

The COVID-19 literature is limited regarding bacterial infections. If bacterial infections drive mortality in respiratory viruses, this has clear implications for patient management. To address this limited literature problem, we review current knowledge on bacterial infections in COVID-19, assess information from past viral respiratory pandemics, and determine the most prevalent infections. We also study antibiotic misuse during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings of this study conclude that there is a need to consider presence or absence of bacterial infection in COVID-19 management. Early determination and antibiotic treatment are of importance, however not all patients who are tested for COVID -19 are also tested for bacterial infections which may exacerbate the disease. Physicians utilised antibiotics as a treatment for COVID -19 for various reasons, this posed a risk of antibiotic overuse and antimicrobial resistance when administered in patients with no bacterial infection. While lack of access to antibiotics could be dangerous in the same vein as its misuse, it is of importance to ensure that these life-saving agents are preserved and used with utmost care.