Multidrug-resistant organisms in a routine ward environment: differential propensity for environmental dissemination and implications for infection control.

Multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) pose significant infection-control challenges in settings with high prevalence and limited isolation facilities. This observational study in an 800-bed hospital determined the prevalence, bacterial density and genetic relatedness of MDROs isolated from ward surfaces, medical devices and the hands of healthcare professionals. The targeted MDROs were meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins, and carbapenem-resistant (CR) Acinetobacter baumannii.

Effective antibiotics in combination against extreme drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa with decreased susceptibility to polymyxin B.

Objective: Extreme drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (XDR-PA) with decreased susceptibility to polymyxin B (PB) has emerged in Singapore, causing infections in immunocompromised hosts. Combination therapy may be the only viable therapeutic option until new antibiotics become available. The objective of this study is to assess the in vitro activity of various antibiotics against local XDR-PA isolates.