Travel and acquisition of multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae

Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is considered a major threat to health. Enterobacteriaceae have increasingly become resistant to antibiotics through the acquisition and dissemination of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL) that confer resistance to most beta-lactams. While ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae were formerly restricted to hospitals, they have now spread to community settings, especially in developing countries. The tremendous expansion of international travels contributed to the importation of multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (MRE) to low prevalence countries. Several studies reported that 21 to 51% of healthy travelers acquire a MRE when travelling abroad, depending on the visited region (Asia, and especially South Asia being associated with the highest risk - up to 85%). Traveling to Africa or the Middle East is associated with lower but still disturbing rates (13-44%). In addition, the occurrence of digestive disorders and/or diarrhea and antibiotic intake increase the risk of MRE acquisition by 2-3 folds. After traveling though, the length of MRE carriage seems to be short (<1 month) and the risk of transmission within the household appears to be low. Nonetheless and beyond the intestinal carriage of MRE, traveling to endemic areas has also been pointed as a risk factor for infections involving MRE, mainly urinary tract infections.