| Summary: | Objectives: <i>E. cloacae</i> is an opportunistic organism that causes serious infections, particularly in immuno-compromised and hospitalized patients, along with the emergence of resistance traits. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the epidemiological pattern and resistance traits of <i>E. cloacae</i> infections as well as those of other bacteria. The study aims to assess the epidemiological patterns, resistance characteristics and clinical outcomes of <i>E. cloacae</i> in Saudi Arabia and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: King Fahad Medical City in Riyadh provided the data between January 2019 and December 2021 for the retrospective study of 638 isolates of <i>E. cloacae</i>. The clinical outcome of an <i>E. cloacae</i> infection was also determined by collecting and statistically analyzing the clinical records of 153 ICU patients. Results: The total percentage of resistant <i>E. cloacae</i> isolates decreased from 48.36% in 2019 to 38% in 2020 and 37.6% in 2021. The overall mortality rate among ICU patients was 40.5%, with an adult age group having a substantial relative risk value of 1.37. Conclusion: <i>E. cloacae</i> is a prevalent nosocomial infection in which adult age is a significant risk factor for mortality. Moreover, this study emphasizes the importance of comparing <i>E. cloacae</i> resistance trends before and throughout the pandemic period in order to better understand the bacteria’s behaviour.
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