Liver abscess in Cali, Colombia

Abstract

Background: Liver abscess (LA) is the most common type of visceral abscess. It is estimated that the epidemiological profile of this disease has changed with the increase in resistance and the use of new drugs. Aim: To describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of LA in a university hospital in the southwestern region of Colombia. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted at Fundación Valle del Lili, Cali, Colombia. Patients older than 18 years with a diagnosis of LA hospitalized between 2011-2020 were included. Results: A total of 182 patients were included. The median age was 56 years (interquartile range, 45-67) and 62.1% were men. The most common microorganism was Klebsiella pneumoniae (17.6%). The majority required percutaneous drainage (58.2%). A 8% had a single abscess and 54.4% were treated in ICU. A 7.1% of the patients died. When comparing cases treated in the ICU vs. those who did not, there was more hepatomegaly (28.3% vs. 11.0%, p=0.004), right pleural effusion (48.5% vs. 28.1%, p=0.010), surgery (42.4% vs. 13.4%, p<0.001), therapeutic failure (22.2 vs. 7.3%, p=0.007) and death (12.1% vs. 1.2%, p=0.005) in patients treated in ICU. Conclusion: Enterobacterales are the main cause of LA in our population. Mortality has decreased, but intensive care hospitalization remains high.