Evaluation of Staphylococcus Aureus and Pseudomonas Aeruginosa in Saliva of Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

​STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: Patients with leukemia are prone to infectious and often life-threatening complications. Evidence suggests that a specific oral microbiota may contribute to septicemia, which can delay antineoplastic treatment, compromise treatment efficacy, or even endanger patients' lives.

PURPOSE: This study investigated the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the saliva of patients with acute myeloid leukemia who were candidates for bone marrow transplantation.

MATERIALS AND METHOD: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 in the Hematology-Oncology Department of Namazi Hospital, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. The study included 28 patients with acute myeloid leukemia eligible for bone marrow transplantation as the case group and age- and sex-matched healthy individuals as the control group. Unstimulated saliva samples were collected to determine the frequency of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Data were analyzed using SPSS version 18, the chi-square test, and the independent t-test.

RESULTS: In the patients with acute myeloid leukemia, 26 (86%) were positive for Staph-ylococcus aureus and 18 (60%) were positive for Pseudomonas aeruginosa . In the healthy group, 11 (22.9%) were positive for Staphylococcus aureus and 3 (6.2%) were positive for Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The frequency of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus in the saliva samples of patients with acute myeloid leukemia was significantly higher than in the healthy control subjects ( p value < 0.05). Chi-square test showed no significant association between age and the frequency of bacteria ( p value= 0.27).

CONCLUSION: In the current study, the frequency of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the saliva of patients with acute myeloid leukemia was higher than in the healthy control group.