[Epidemiology and clinical features of Acinetobacter baumannii infections in humans]

Over the past 30 years, Acinetobacter (A.) baumannii has been increasingly recognized as an important human pathogen. In contrast to the "non-baumannii" Acinetobacter spp. which rarely cause diseases in humans, the members of the A. baumannii-group (A. baumannii, A. pittii and A. nosocomialis) are important nosocomial pathogens. A. baumannii itself has been implicated as a causative agent in various severe infections such as bloodstream infections, pneumonia, or meningitis, mainly in immunocompromised patients in the intensive care unit setting. The combination of intrinsic and increasing acquired resistance to various antimicrobial agents often limits the therapeutic options. Currently, none of the available antimicrobial agents with potential activity against Acinetobacter spp. such as, carbapenems, tigecycline, and colistin can be considered uniformly active against all A. baumannii strains. In addition, the incidence of multi- or panresistant A. baumannii-strains is increasing worldwide. Due to the unique combination of high resistance to adverse environmental conditions, the propensity for clonal spread and the extensive resistance to antimicrobial agents, A. baumannii is one of the most important bacterial pathogens of our time.