Authors : Nishal Murthi; Anish Singh; Reema Ragini Kumar

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 9 - September

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/2ux27rde

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26sep494

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : Burkholderia pseudomallei, an environmental saprophytic Gram-negative bacterium, is the causative agent of melioidosis, a severe opportunistic infection associated with significant mortality across tropical and subtropical regions (Limmathurotsakul et al., 2016; Birnie et al., 2019). Long considered endemic primarily to Northern Australia and Southeast Asia (Wiersinga et al., 2018; Currie et al., 2019), mounting environmental sampling, phylogenomic sequencing, and clinical surveillance demonstrate that B. pseudomallei is widely distributed across Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), including Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Guam, Fiji, and parts of Micronesia (Price et al., 2017; Gourinat & BerliozArthaud, 2018; Jenney & Spelman, 2018; Currie, 2025). Transmission occurs through percutaneous inoculation, inhalation, or ingestion of contaminated soil or surface water, with risk heightened by severe meteorological events such as tropical cyclones (Hatcher & Patel, 2022; Elliott & Dance, 2021). The clinical presentation varies from localized cutaneous ulcers to necrotizing pneumonia, visceral abscesses, and fulminant septicemia (Chakravorty & Heath, 2019; Gassiep et al., 2020). High rates of noncommunicable comorbidities across Oceania—notably type 2 diabetes mellitus, heavy alcohol consumption, and chronic renal disease—create a highly susceptible host demographic (Rao & Taylor, 2017; Kool & Negin, 2018; Currie, 2025). Diagnostic misidentification by automated biochemical systems remains a major operational hurdle, often leading to inappropriate empiric antimicrobial therapy (Dingle & Butler-Wu, 2017; Lau et al., 2021). This systematic review evaluates current evidence on the environmental ecology, genomic epidemiology, clinical spectrum, diagnostic hurdles, and therapeutic protocols for B. pseudomallei in the Pacific, outlining key priorities within a unified One Health strategic framework (Soni & Prasad, 2023; Laklaeng et al., 2024).

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