BACTERIOLOGICAL AND CLINICAL PROFILE OF COMMUNITY ACQUIRED PNEUMONIA IN PATIENTS ATTENDING A TERTIARY CARE CENTRE IN TELANGANA

Background: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, particularly among elderly individuals and patients with underlying comorbidities. Understanding the local bacterial etiology and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns is critical for guiding appropriate empirical antimicrobial therapy and optimizing clinical outcomes. Objectives: To determine the bacteriological and clinical profile of community-acquired pneumonia and evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of bacterial pathogens isolated from CAP patients attending a tertiary care centre in Telangana. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March 2025 to May 2026 at the Department of Microbiology, Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences and Research General Hospital, Hyderabad. A total of 378 sputum samples from clinically suspected CAP patients meeting predefined inclusion criteria were processed. Samples were cultured on blood agar, MacConkey agar, chocolate agar, and isolates were identified using the VITEK 2 Compact system. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed using VITEK 2 Compact AST cards according to CLSI 2025 guidelines.