Effectiveness and Safety of Colistimethate Sodium Used in the Treatment of Neutropenic Blood Cancer Patients Infected with Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa

• Published in: Arabian journal for science and engineering (2011) 2024-07, Vol.49 (7), p.9111-9120
• Main Authors: Salman, Alaa, Ghannam, Ameera, Kittaneh, Ala’a, Abu-zant, Aladdin, Sahoury, Yousef, Sahouri, Ekram, Abuamsha, Ruba, Salman, Mazen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Engineering; Humanities and Social Sciences; multidisciplinary; Research Article-Biological Sciences; Science
• ISSN: 2193-567X; 2191-4281
• DOI: 10.1007/s13369-024-08830-z

The increasing incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a worldwide problem, particularly among critically ill patients. Since it is not anticipated that any new treatments will be available in the near feature, our research aims to assess the efficacy and safety of colistin in the treatment of infections caused by P. aeruginosa in neutropenic leukemia patients. A study was conducted at two hospitals (i.e., Beit-Jala Hospital/Bethlehem; n  = 78 and Augusta Victoria Hospital/Jerusalem; n  = 61) over a period of 18 months. Using a confidence interval of 95%, a margin of error of 5%, and a response rate of 50%, demographic and clinical characteristics were analyzed. One of the major results of our study was that colistin-treated patients had a favorable clinical response at day six and less nephrotoxicity outcomes compared to the control group. Data analyses revealed a high incidence (50–63%; n  = 79) of leukemia in both hospital groups. Microbiologic response, infection-related mortality, and relapse rates were not statistically significant between both groups. Our study demonstrated that colistin is highly useful and effective in the treatment of MDR P. aeruginosa in blood cancer patients. Colistin has proven superior to control group in terms of clinical response at day six. Our study has also shown lower nephrotoxicity rates, which is further encouraging and could support the potential of using colistin as an alternative therapy for such infections. As multidrug resistance continues to be a worldwide concern, the need for effective therapies such as colistin remains of great importance.