Carbapenem resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii: the molecular epidemic features of an emerging problem in health care facilities
Acinetobacter baumannii is an opportunistic gram-negative pathogen with increasing relevance in a variety of nosocomial infections especially among intensive-care-unit (ICU) patients. Carbapenems have been widely used to treat serious multidrug-resistant A. baumannii infections; however, incidences...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries
2009-06-01
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| Series: | Journal of Infection in Developing Countries |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://jidc.org/index.php/journal/article/view/240 |
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| Summary: | Acinetobacter baumannii is an opportunistic gram-negative pathogen with increasing relevance in a variety of nosocomial infections especially among intensive-care-unit (ICU) patients. Carbapenems have been widely used to treat serious multidrug-resistant A. baumannii infections; however, incidences of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii are rising in several parts of the world and large and sustained outbreaks caused by such bacteria have been described. Carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii epidemics are sustained by clusters of highly similar strains that successfully spread among different cities and countries; their resistance phenotype is mainly due to the acquisition of carbapenem-hydrolyzing class D β-lactamase (CHDL) genes flanked by insertion sequence (IS) elements. Multi-facility outbreaks can be also sustained by inter-hospital transfer of colonized patients. Here, we review the global epidemiology of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii, with the emphasis on the molecular epidemiology and genetic characterization of carbapenem resistance in epidemic strains. |
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| ISSN: | 1972-2680 |