ISSN: 0973-7510

E-ISSN: 2581-690X

Research Article | Open Access
R. Lia Kusumawati1,2 , Mirzan Hasibuan2, Afrinayanti W. Siregar2 and Cynthia Gozali3
1Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, 20154, Indonesia.
2Universitas Sumatera Utara Hospital, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, 20155, Indonesia.
3Department of Microbiology, Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta, 10430, Indonesia.
Article Number: 10370 | © The Author(s). 2025
J Pure Appl Microbiol. 2025;19(2):1390-1400. https://doi.org/10.22207/JPAM.19.2.42
Received: 08 March 2025 | Accepted: 23 April 2025 | Published online: 02 June 2025
Issue online: June 2025
Abstract

Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis, is endemic in Southeast Asia and tropical regions like Indonesia. This bacterium poses a challenge due to its uncommon and resistance to high-generation antibiotics. This study aims to detect B. pseudomallei in clinical samples from patients suspected of having melioidosis and to describe its clinical manifestations. A total of 118 clinical samples were collected and analyzed using Ashdown’s Selective Agar and routine bacteriological media, while the Vitek 2 Compact system was utilized for antibiotic identification and sensitivity testing. B. pseudomallei was detected in 9 (7.6%) samples, with the highest positivity rate in sputum at 6/59 (10.16%), followed by pus at 5.9% (1/17), pleural fluid at 10% (1/10), and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) at 4.5% (1/22). No B. pseudomallei growth was detected in blood and urine samples. Clinically, the positive cases exhibited symptoms akin to pulmonary tuberculosis in 3/9 (33%), combined hydropneumothorax and pulmonary TB in 2/9 (22%), and bilateral pleural effusions in 1/9 (11%). Other clinical presentations included a combination of bilateral pleural effusions and pulmonary TB, mediastinal pleural effusion with pulmonary TB and pneumonia, and burns on the soles of the feet. Antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed effective treatment options for ceftazidime, piperacillin-tazobactam, meropenem, and tigecycline. These findings highlight B. pseudomallei as a significant health concern in North Sumatra, emphasizing the need for improved diagnostic awareness and effective antimicrobial strategies to manage melioidosis cases.

Keywords

Antibiotic Resistance, Burkholderia pseudomallei, Diagnostic Techniques, Melioidosis

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© The Author(s) 2025. Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License which permits unrestricted use, sharing, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.