[Analysis of antibiotics as a curative measure in four hospital units]. / Analyse de la prescription antibiotique a visee curative en milieu chirurgical et en reanimation.

In order to analyse the methods of curative prescription of antibiotics in four units of hospitalization of the hospital Charles Nicolle of Tunis, a descriptive study of prescriptions was carried out during the first five months of year 2001. On the whole, 165 prescriptions delivered to patients were included in the study. The average age of the patients was 44 years, the sex ratio of 1.45 and the average duration of 15.1 days. Approximately two thirds of the initially probabilist prescriptions were not documented secondarily. Those secondarily documented (n = 51) were essentially related to nosocomial pneumonias and septicaemias (29 and 10 prescriptions). The two germs most frequently isolated during nosocomial pneumonias were Acinetobacter baumannii and, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (17 and 8 strains). Only imipenem, netilmicin and colistin remain active on A. baumannii. The bitherapy was the most used treatment (87.5%). It was generally an association beta-lactamin-aminosid (52.9%). The average cost of a documented prescription varied from 943,6 to 1184,9 TD (Tunisian Dinars) according as the prescription were secondarily documented or not.

[Mechanical ventilation in intensive care units: indications, modalities and complications. Results of a prospective multicenter survey in Tunisia]. / La Ventilation artificielle en réanimation: indications, conduite pratique et complications. Résultats d'une enquête prospective multicentrique tunisienne.

The survey was performed during the month of March 1998 and concerned 9 ICUs located in teaching hospitals. To be included each ICU had to MV for more than 12 hours were included in the study and had a 28 day follow-up in the ICU or until hospital discharge. Collected parameters were indications of MV, modalities of MV and of weaning, complication and outcome at hospital discharge. Assist-control ventilation was the most used ventilation modality (69.8%). Weaning of MV was performed in 63% of the study patients and was based on a once-a-day attempt of spontaneous breathing through a T-piece (59.5%) and a combination of intermittent mandatory ventilation with pressure support (IMV-PS: 27%) or pressure support alone (11.2%). Mean length of hospital stay was 19.7 +/- 15.9 days of which 11.6 days were spent in the ICU. Fifty nine patients (54%) were alive at discharge form the ICU of whom 4 ultimately died during their hospital stay. MV practice as well as ICU facilities are not homogenous in Tunisia. Recommendations and guidelines should be built in order to standardize MV practice in Tunisia.