Blood Culture Contaminants in a Paediatric Population Retrospective study from a tertiary hospital in Oman. Sultan Qaboos Univ

Objectives: Most children presenting with febrile illness require a blood culture to determine the causative organism as well as its sensitivity to antibiotics. However, false-positive results lead to unnecessary hospitalisations, prescriptions and tests. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of false-positive blood cultures among a paediatric population at a tertiary hospital in Oman.

Methods: This retrospective study included all 225 children
Results: A total of 344 positive blood cultures were recorded during the study period, of which 185 (53.8%) were true-positive and 159 (46.2%) were contaminated. Most true-positive isolates (26.5%) were coagulase-negative Staphylococcus spp. (CONS) followed by Escherichia coli (9.7%), while the majority of contaminated isolates were CONS (67.9%) followed by Streptococcus spp. (6.9%). Children with contaminated cultures were significantly younger (P
Conclusion: In this population, CRP level was not an adequate marker to differentiate between true- and false-positive cultures. A dedicated well-trained phlebotomy team for paediatric patients is essential.