[Comparison of susceptibilities for fosfomycin determined by various methods in clinical isolates in 2003 -2004]

Hideaki Muramatsu1, Jinko Ishikawa, Osanori Nagura

  • 1Hamamatsu University School of Medicine.

Insights

Antimicrobial testing revealed carbapenems show strong activity against common Gram-negative bacteria. Fosfomycin susceptibility testing using Mueller-Hinton agar with glucose-6-phosphate is reliable for E. coli.

Area of Science:

  • Clinical Microbiology
  • Antimicrobial Resistance
  • Bacterial Pathogenesis

Background:

  • Gram-negative bacterial infections pose a significant public health threat.
  • Monitoring antimicrobial resistance patterns is crucial for effective treatment.
  • Carbapenems and fosfomycin are important antibiotics for treating Gram-negative infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibilities of common Gram-negative pathogens.
  • To compare different methods for fosfomycin susceptibility testing.
  • To assess the reliability of agar dilution and Etest methods.

Main Methods:

  • Agar dilution method used to determine Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) for various antimicrobials against clinical isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Serratia marcescens, Citrobacter spp., Enterobacter spp., and Proteus mirabilis.
  • Specific conditions for fosfomycin (FOM) susceptibility testing included Mueller-Hinton agar (MHA) with glucose-6-phosphate (G6P) aerobically, MHA anaerobically, and nutrient agar aerobically.
  • Etest method was employed to compare results for FOM, levofloxacin (LVFX), imipenem (IPM), and meropenem (MEPM).

Main Results:

  • Carbapenems (imipenem, panipenem, meropenem, biapenem) demonstrated excellent activity against all tested Gram-negative isolates.
  • MIC ranges for other tested antimicrobials were broad, indicating variable susceptibility.
  • Agar dilution method for FOM using MHA with G6P under aerobic conditions yielded reliable MICs for E. coli, consistent with prior reports.
  • High agreement was observed between agar dilution and Etest methods for FOM, LVFX, IPM, and MEPM.
  • Fosfomycin testing agreement in E. coli was high, though influenced by bacterial species and culture conditions.

Conclusions:

  • Carbapenems remain highly effective against the studied Gram-negative bacteria.
  • The agar dilution method with MHA containing G6P under aerobic conditions is a reliable method for determining fosfomycin susceptibility in E. coli.
  • Methodological variations can impact antimicrobial susceptibility testing results, highlighting the need for standardized protocols.

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