Frequency, clinical features and response to treatment of infected ascites at ain shams university hospitals

Ascites is a common problem in patients with chronic liver disease. About 60% of patients with cirrhosis will develop ascites. Patients with chronic liver disease and cirrhosis frequently develop infections of the ascitic fluid. This study assessed the clinical profile of patients with ascitic fluid infection admitted to Tropical Medicine department at Ain Shams University hospitals. The cross-sectional study was conducted on 87 Egyptian patients with chronic liver disease and ascites over one year from June 2017 to May 2018 by collecting their clinical, laboratory and radiological data. The frequency of infected ascites among the studied patients with chronic liver disease and ascites was 31%. The main presenting symptom was abdominal pain (37%) and the most common clinical sign was lower limb edema (81%). The most frequently isolated micro-organism was E. coli detected in 7% of patients with infected ascites. Among the 27 patients with infected ascites, 12 patients responded to the 3rd generation cephalosporins, nine patients responded to Meropenem.