Via CIDRAP: News Scan for Aug 01, 2013. Excerpt:
Scientists writing in Eurosurveillance today detailed the first outbreak of carbapenem-resistant New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 (NDM-1)–producing Acinetobacter baumannii in Europe, in a French intensive care unit (ICU) from January to May. Bacteria that produce NDM-1 are usually resistant to most antibiotics.
The index patient was a woman in her 80s who was transferred from Algeria for care of end-stage cirrhosis. On Jan 18 she was admitted to a Paris hospital and, in line with guidance, was screened for carriage of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, which turned up the NDM-1 A baumannii.
From then to Feb 2 an additional three patients in that ICU were confirmed to have the same drug-resistant strain. Meanwhile, another woman in her 80s arrived from the same region in Algeria and was found to be NDM-positive with the same strain on admission to the same ICU.
Two months after this first cluster of five patients, two additional patients who were free of MDR bacteria on admission to the ICU also acquired the NDM-1–producing A baumannii outbreak strain during their stay in this unit.
The authors conclude, "Taking in account the relationship between North African countries and many European countries, it is possible that the spread of NDM-1 carbapenemase may occur rapidly, mostly through A baumannii rather than Enterobacteriacae, since A baumannii may become much more difficult to eradicate."
