Epidemiology of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in a UK district hospital; an...

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) are an increasingly important cause of resistance in Gram-negative bacteria throughout the world.

We investigated the clinical and molecular epidemiology of infections caused by ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae in a UK hospital, to identify the types of ESBL produced and risk factors for acquisition.

Between July 2008 and June 2009, all patients yielding ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae from any clinical specimen were prospectively investigated using a questionnaire. API20E was used for bacterial identification; susceptibility testing and ESBL production were assessed by BSAC disc diffusion and cefpodoxime-clavulanate synergy tests, respectively. Polymerase chain reaction was used to screen a subset of isolates for bla(CTX-M) genes, to assign Escherichia coli isolates to their phylogenetic groups, and to identify members of the uropathogenic ST131 lineage.

The overall prevalence of ESBL producers among clinical samples yielding Enterobacteriaceae was 1%; ESBL producers, obtained from 124 patients, were E. coli (N = 105), Klebsiella pneumoniae (N = 12), and others (N = 7). The main risk factors identified include recent antibiotic use (93%) and presence of a urinary catheter (24%). CTX-M group 1 ESBLs dominated (in 59 of 78, 76%, isolates studied). Most E. coli (35 of 56 tested) were phylogroup B2; of these, 23 belonged to the ST131 clone, 12 were phylogroup D, and four each belonged to phylogroups A and B1.

ESBLs are an uncommon but significant problem in north-west Cambridgeshire. CTX-M-type enzymes were found in 75% of ESBL-positive isolates. All but two patients had at least one recognized risk factor. This study supports the requirement for interventions to reduce inappropriate urinary catheterization and antibiotic prescribing.