Dados do Trabalho

Título

Use of a Multiplex PCR-Based Assay to Analyze the Frequency of Acinetobacter baumannii Among Multidrug-Resistant Isolates of Acinetobacter sp. From Hospitalar Origin

Introdução

Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii pose a major threat in the hospitals, acting as a reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes, and causing a large number of difficult-to-treat infections, highlighting the importance of accurate identification. Due to phenotypic similarity of Acinetobacter sp., biochemical identification is unreliable, increasing the risk of treatment failure and mortality.

Objetivo (s)

So we aimed to identify the frequency of A. baumannii among other Acinetobacter sp. isolates from a tertiary hospital.

Material e Métodos

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee (Nº 6.098.878). Between January 2022 and July 2024, 28 multidrug-resistant isolates identified as Acinetobacter sp. were collected by convenience from the Tarcísio Maia Regional Hospital in Mossoró, Brazil. After transport to the LABMIC-UFERSA laboratory, the purity and phenotypic identification were confirmed by conventional biochemical tests. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by the disk diffusion method. PCR was used to identify the genus Acinetobacter (recA), and A. baumannii species (ITS region and blaOXA-51). The isolates were mainly recovered from tracheal secretion and blood cultures. 

Resultados e Conclusão

High resistance was observed to amikacin (100%), ciprofloxacin (96.42%) and to meropenem and imipenem (92.85 %). A total of 96.42% of the isolates were identified as A. baumannii and 3.58% related to Acinetobacter Non-baumannii species. These results show the limitation of phenotypic methods in differentiating Acinetobacter species and emphasize the importance of using molecular techniques for more accurate identification.

Palavras Chave

Acinetobacter baumannii; PCR; species identification; intergenic spacer region; gene amplification