Bacteremia: From Diagnosis to Treatment.

Objective: There are many difficulties in diagnosing and treating bacteremia. In this study, we aimed to evaluate "true" and "false-positive bacteremia" and assess mortality risk factors and the impact of different treatment regimens.

Materials And Methods: Hospitalized adult patients with -positive blood cultures were assessed by a two-stage analysis. First, the clinical significance of blood cultures was assessed, and patients were divided into "true" and "false-positive bacteremia" groups. Then, excluding false positives, we analyzed the antimicrobial regimens and the factors associated with 28-day mortality in true bacteremia cases performing univariate and multivariate analyses.

Results: The study included 127 out of 138 patients with bacteremia. True bacteremia was identified in 51.2% and false-positive bacteremia in 48.8% of patients. In the true bacteremia group, hypotension, nosocomial bacteremia, concomitant infections, a source of bacteremia, two positive blood culture sets, and 28-day mortality were more common. The 28-day mortality was 50.7% among true bacteremia cases. In multivariate analysis, age and solid tumor were the independent predictors of 28-day mortality. Early effective antimicrobial therapy and different antimicrobial regimens, including trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (SXT), fluoroquinolones (FQs), and tigecycline (TGC), did not have any significant impact on survival.

Conclusion: Patients with bacteremia should first be assessed regarding clinical significance. Clinical findings, the presence of multiple positive blood culture sets and the primary sources of bacteremia are useful parameters while discriminating true from false-positive bacteremia. Patients with advanced age and solid tumors should be followed carefully in terms of mortality. Antimicrobial regimens, including SXT, FQs, or TGC, can be preferred in patients with bacteremia considering antimicrobial resistance and adverse effects or toxicity.