[A microbiological and clinical study of 57 cases of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in liver cirrhosis patients].

We studied fifty seven episodes of cirrhotic spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in order to know its microbiological, clinical and evolutive characteristics. One third of the patients had presented some previous peritonitis episodes. Ninety three percent of the patients referred some symptoms at time of diagnosis. Ascitic fluid Gram stain showed the presence of bacteria in 72% of the samples. Culture of ascitic fluid was positive for a single microorganism in 50 cases (88%). Seventy seven percent of microorganisms were Gram negative being Escherichia Coli in 63% of cases. Hemoculture was positive in 68% of cases with an almost complete correspondence with germs found in ascites. Seventy four percent of patients presented some complication throughout their hospital stay being the most frequent renal failure (49%) and encephalopathy (46%). Sixty three percent of patients died being the mortality rate higher amongst the older patients and amongst those who did not present neither high temperature or peritonism, or those who developed some complication.