Vol.52 No.8 August 2004
Antimicrobial activity of meropenem against main bacterial species isolated from patient blood between 2002 and 2003
Division of Clinical Microbiology, Department of Clinical Laboratories, Keio University Hospital, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Abstract
Using broth micro dilution, we studied the susceptibility of 145 clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacteriaceae to meropenem (MEPM) and reference agents. All strains were isolated from the blood of patients admitted to Keio University Hospital between September 2002 and March 2003.
1. MEPM and other carbapenems showed excellent antibacterial activity against most blood culture isolates, except for drug-resistant staphylococci (MRSA and some S. epidermidis). A comparison of antibacterial activity of MEPM with that in previous studies showed no marked increase in MEPM-resistant clinical isolates.
2. MEPM differed microbiologically from imipenem, panipenem, and biapenem in its greater potency in vitro against most Gram-negative pathogens, including P. aeruginosa, and similar potency against many Gram-positive pathogens. Resistance to MEPM in clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa was lowest among the 4 carbapenems tested.
MEPM thus retains its potency as the agent of choice in treating serious infections.
Key word
blood culture, susceptibility, carbapenems, meropenem
Received
May 18, 2004
Accepted
June 7, 2004
Jpn. J. Chemother. 52 (8): 433-439, 2004
