A Study of Metallo-Beta-Lactamase Producing Pseudomonas Aeruginosa in Blood Samples of Burned Patients

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Septicaemia is a life threatening complication of severely burned patients. Among many organisms invading blood stream Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a well-known for its powerful antibiotic resistance mechanisms which increasingly limit the choices for treatment. Among many such resistance mechanisms it is the metallo-beta-lactamase (MBL) which confers resistance to Carbapenem group of antibiotics, one of the final resorts to fight them. The present study was undertaken to detect MBL producing P. aeruginosa using phenotypic method from blood samples of burned patients as well as to know their drug sensitivity pattern. MATERIALS AND METHODS: For this purpose 67 Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from blood samples of admitted burned patients were subjected to susceptibility testing to antipseudomonal drugs by disc diffusion test and those found to be Carbapenem resistant were subjected to Imipenem-EDTA combined disk synergy test for MBL detection. RESULT: Out of 67 isolates of P.aeruginosa, 19 (28.4%) were found to be Carbapenem resistant and 11 (16.4%) were MBL producers. A particularly important feature was that the MBL producers were highly resistant to the antibiotics tested than the non-producers. However all of them were susceptible to Colistin and Polymixin B. CONCLUSION: This study has made us to think that a constant vigil and careful selection of antibiotics are necessary to keep prevalence of MBL producing P.aeruginosa in check. The accurate identification and reporting of MBL producing P. aeruginosa will aid infection control practitioners in preventing the spread of these multidrug-resistant isolates.