Investigation of carbapenem resistance and the first identification of Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) enzyme among Escherichia coli isolates in Turkey: A prospective study.

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the presence of carbapenem resistance and carbapenemase production in Escherichia coli isolates from clinical samples in Turkey.

Methods: The prospective study included a total of 4.052 Escherichia coli isolates collected from patients admitted to a hospital from March 2011 to May 2012.