What is the pathogenesis of Enterobacter cloacae

Many people do not know about Enterobacter cloacae. In fact, this is also a relatively common enterobacter. It mainly exists in animal and human feces, and also exists in some soil and plants. Once people come into contact with this bacteria, it will have a great impact on health and often lead to the occurrence of some diseases. In order to prevent this Enterobacter cloacae, we should strengthen the body's immunity and not provide opportunities for pathogens to invade.

1. Decreased host defense function

(1) Damage to the local defense barrier: Burns, traumatic surgery, and certain interventional procedures can cause damage to the skin and mucous membranes, making it easy for Enterobacter cloacae to penetrate the human body barrier and invade.

(2) Immune system dysfunction: Congenital developmental disorders of the immune system or acquired damage (physical, chemical, or biological factors), such as radiotherapy, cytotoxic drugs, immunosuppressants, and viral infections that damage the immune system, can all cause opportunistic infections.

2. Provides opportunities for pathogens to invade

The use of various surgeries, indwelling catheters, venous puncture catheters, endoscopy, mechanical ventilation, etc., provides a pathway for Enterobacter cloacae to invade the body and may lead to infection.

3. Enterobacter cloacae production

β-lactamase Enterobacter cloacae can produce both ESBIs and Amp C enzymes, which makes it highly resistant to multiple antibiotics and brings difficulties to clinical treatment. The drug sensitivity test of 144 strains of Enterobacter cloacae in Zhejiang Province showed that the sensitivity rates to amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, cefuroxime, aztreonam, ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin, piperacillin-tazobactam, and amikacin were all below 55%, and the sensitivity rate to cefoperazone-sulbactam and cefepime was only about 60%. Only the sensitivity rate to imipenem was as high as 98.61%, of which 24.31% were strains with high Amp C enzyme production and 36.81% were strains producing ESBLs.

4. Widespread use of antibiotics

(1) Broad-spectrum antimicrobial drugs can inhibit the normal flora in various parts of the human body, causing dysbiosis

(2) Strains that are sensitive to antibiotics are suppressed, causing resistant strains to multiply in large numbers, which can easily lead to the spread of hospital-acquired bacteria and cause illness in patients. In recent years, due to the widespread use of third-generation cephalosporins, it is easy to screen out Enterobacter cloacae that produce high levels of Amp C enzyme, leading to the prevalence of drug-resistant bacteria.