Retrospective evaluation of blood culture isolates and sepsis survival rate in foals in the Czech Republic: 50 cases (2011-2013).

Objective: To identify the specific pathogens causing sepsis in hospitalized foals in the Czech Republic and identify important factors associated with their survival.

Design: A retrospective study from 2011 to 2013.

Setting: University veterinary teaching hospital.

Animals: Fifty compromised foals.

Interventions: None.

Measurement And Main Results: Blood was aseptically collected for bacterial culture from compromised foals. The foals were classified as septic according to a positive blood culture result or sepsis score ≥11. Blood cultures were positive in 44% of the foals. In these positive cultures, 27.3% had only Gram-positive (G+) bacteria and 54.5% had only Gram-negative (G-) bacteria. A mixed bacterial population was presented in 18.2% of the positive cultures. Thirty-six foals were classified as septic on the basis of positive blood culture or a sepsis score ≥11. In the group of foals that did not survive, there were significantly more foals with low levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG) than foals with normal levels of IgG (P < 0.0001). We also found a significant difference in the proportion of foals with low levels of IgG and positive blood cultures when compared to negative blood cultures. Twenty-six of the 50 foals were discharged from the hospital. Survival was significantly lower in foals with a diagnosis of sepsis than in foals without sepsis. There was no statistically significant difference between foals that died as a result of infection caused by G- or G+ pathogens. There was no difference in the proportion of survivors that did or did not receive antimicrobials prior to admission.

Conclusions: In our study, we confirmed the increasing trend for G+ bacteria in blood cultures but G- still predominate. The percentage of nonsurviving septic foals was high.