Carbapenem use identified as risk factor for colistin-resistant bacteria
In a paper today in Eurosurveillance, Swiss researchers report that prior exposure to carbapenems was the only risk factor for colonization or infection in patients with colistin-resistant Escherichia coli or Klebsiella pneumoniae.
In the retrospective matched case-control study, researchers at two university-affiliated hospitals in Basel, Switzerland, analyzed more than 10,000 E coli and K pneumoniae isolates collected over a 5-year period for susceptibility to colistin. Forty-two patients (33 with colistin-resistant E coli and 9 with colistin-resistant K pneumoniae) were identified, and they were matched with 126 control patients.
The results showed that baseline characteristics, prior comorbidities, prior exposure to antibiotics, and healthcare settings did not differ between cases and controls. Only two of the patients had previous exposure to colistin. Prior exposure to carbapenems, along with a stay abroad and hospitalization, was found to be associated with colistin resistance. In multivariable analysis, however, only prior exposure to carbapenems remained as a risk factor for colonization with colistin-resistant E coli or K pneumoniae (odds ratio, 5.00).
The authors of the study conclude that the associations between prior carbapenem exposure, as well as the concomitant resistance to quinolones, fosfomycin, and tobramycin identified in the colistin-resistant isolates, suggests that low-grade dissemination of colistin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae in human is mainly fueled by selection pressure occurring in patients exposed to different antimicrobials.
"Our findings suggest that sources of colistin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae may be present in the absence of widespread colistin use in human medicine and that selection pressure constitutes an important driver for the occurrence of colistin-resistant strains in clinical isolates," they write.
Jul 26 Eurosurveill research article
Study finds decline in antifungal use at US hospitals
Researchers with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention yesterday reported a small but statistically significant decrease in antifungal use among inpatients at US acute care hospitals.
The study, published in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, looked at data from a nationwide hospital drug database from 2006 through 2012. Over the 7-year period, 2.7% of all inpatients and 7.7% of all intensive care unit (ICU) patients received an antifungal. The overall antifungal days of therapy (DOT) for all study years combined was 35 per 1,000 patient-days, with antifungal DOT in ICUs more than twice as high compared with non-ICUs (73.7 vs. 31.0 DOT/1,000 patient-days). Azoles, primarily fluconazole, were the most frequently used antifungal class, followed by echinocandins.
Multivariable trend analysis showed an 18.2% decrease in overall antifungal use during 2006 through 2012 as measured by DOT, with azole use decreasing by 21% and polyene use decreasing by 47%; echinocandin use rose by 11% from 2006 to 2010, but then declined afterward. Unspecified septicemia, HIV, and antineoplastic therapy were among the top primary diagnosis codes for patients who received antifungal therapy.
The authors of the study say the declines in antifungal use do not necessarily mean that antifungals are being used appropriately, since they were not able to assess appropriateness in the study. Nor does it mean that antifungal stewardship efforts are not needed. They conclude that further monitoring and studies of antifungal use are needed to determine where antifungal stewardship efforts could have the most impact.
Jul 25 J Antimicrob Chemother abstract
Post-hurricane floodwaters found to harbor pathogens, resistance genes
An analysis of floodwaters in the months after Hurricane Harvey hit Texas last summer has found elevated levels of E coli and other pathogens and a higher abundance of antibiotic resistance genes, according to a new study in Environmental Science and Technology Letters.
In the study, researchers from Rice University and Virginia Tech surveyed microbial communities in bayou water, floodwater inside and outside residences, and residual bayou sediment collected post-flood. In two of Houston's major bayous, they found that levels of E coli 3 days post-flood were significantly higher than historic levels, and that immediate post-flood levels of E coli were significantly higher than those measured in samples collected over 2 months after the hurricane.
Six-month monitoring of one of the bayous showed that the relative abundances of two antibiotic resistance genes, sul1 and intI1, were highest immediately after the flood. This likely resulted from the discharge of untreated or partially treated sewage from wastewater treatment plants.
The researchers also found that the abundances of fecal indicator bacteria (E coli and enterococcus) and other pathogenic bacteria (Aeromonas, Klebsiella, Legionella, and Salmonella) were significantly higher in stagnant indoor water (from homes that were closed off more than 1 week) than in street water, bayou water, and open indoor water, while sul1 and intI1 genes in closed indoor waters were more abundant than in street water or bayou water. In addition, pathogenic gene markers were more abundant in floodwater sediment deposited in residential areas and public parks than in deep soil cores, and the pathogen profiles were different from those found in floodwaters and bayou waters.
The authors conclude, "Overall, the epic flooding caused by Harvey temporarily shifted the local microbial landscape, increasing the levels of gene markers for pathogenic bacteria, multiantibiotic resistance, and its extent of dissemination in the flooded areas."
Jul 23 Environ Sci Technol Lett abstract