Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter spp. from hospital intensive care units in Brazilian Amazon

Acinetobacter spp. are one of the main pathogens responsible for healthcare-associated infections and are associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality globally, mainly because of their high capacity to present and develop resistance to antimicrobials. To identify species of the Acinetobacter and their resistance profiles from samples collected from hospitalized patients, health professionals and hospital environmental sources in the intensive care units of different public reference hospitals in Porto Velho City, Rondônia, Western Brazilian Amazon. Isolates were identified using microbiological and molecular techniques. The antimicrobial susceptibility profile was determined by disk diffusion. A total of 201 Acinetobacter spp. isolates were identified, of which 47.3% originated from hospital structures, 46.8% from patients and 6% from healthcare professionals. A. baumannii and A. nosocomialis were the most prevalent, with frequency of 58.7% and 31.8%, respectively. Regarding the susceptibility profile, it was observed that 56.3% were classified as multidrug-resistant and 76.2% of the samples belonging to A. baumannii were resistant to carbapenems. In contrast, 96.9% were susceptible to polymyxin B and 91.3% to doxycycline. The data presented here can be used to guide and strengthen the control of multidrug-resistant infections caused by Acinetobacter spp., in addition to improving providing information from a traditionally unassisted region of Brazil.