Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 May;50(5):477-481.
doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2022.02.022. Epub 2022 Feb 26.

Containment of a carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex outbreak in a COVID-19 intensive care unit

Paula Eckardt  1 , Kelsi Canavan  2 , Rachel Guran  3 , Elizabeth George  4 , Nancimae Miller  5 , Dianeysis H Avendano  6 , Myeongji Kim  7 , Khaled Himed  7 , Karen Heidi Gonzalez Ramirez  8
Affiliations

Containment of a carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex outbreak in a COVID-19 intensive care unit

Paula Eckardt et al. Am J Infect Control. 2022 May.

Abstract

Background: A carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii outbreak in the COVID intensive care unit of a community hospital was contained using multidrug resistant organism guidelines. The purpose of this study is to report on an outbreak investigation and containment strategy that was used, and to discuss prevention strategy.

Methods: A multidisciplinary approach contained the spread of infection. Strategies implemented included consultation with experts, screening, and reversal of personal protective equipment conservation. Ensuring infection control best practices are maintained remain important efforts to reduce the spread of multidrug resistant organisms.

Results: Five patients with carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii were identified from routine clinical cultures within one week and one patient was identified from active surveillance cultures.

Discussion: Personal protective equipment conservation, strategies to prevent health care personnel exposure, and patient surge staffing protocols may have increased the likelihood of multidrug resistant organism transmission. Environmental and behavioral infection control regulations with effective administrative guidance, active surveillance cultures, and antimicrobial stewardship are critical to prevent future outbreaks.

Conclusions: After outbreak containment strategies were implemented, no additional patients were identified with carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. Conventional infection prevention and control strategies were re-instituted. A multidisciplinary approach with continued focus on hand hygiene, environmental cleaning, and correct use of personal protective equipment needs to be put in place to successfully contain and prevent the spread of carbapenem resistant infections.

Keywords: Acinetobacter baumannii; Antimicrobial resistance; COVID; Containment; Infection control; Infection prevention; MDRO; Outbreak; PPE.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Epidemic curve of CRAB outbreak in COVID ICU.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Polly M., de Almeida B.L., Lennon R.P., Cortês M.F., Costa S.F., Guimarães T. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of multidrug-resistant bacterial infections in an acute care hospital in Brazil. Am J Infect Control. 2021;S0196-6553 00618-0Advance online publication. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rangel K., Chagas T., De-Simone S.G. Acinetobacter baumannii infections in times of COVID-19 pandemic. Pathogens. 2021;10:1006. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Perez S., Innes G.K., Walters M.S., et al. Increase in hospital-acquired carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii infection and colonization in an acute care hospital during a surge in COVID-19 admissions - New Jersey, February-July 2020. MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report. 2020;69:1827–1831. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cohen J., Rodgers Y. Contributing factors to personal protective equipment shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prev Med. 2020;141 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2021. Interim infection prevention and control recommendations for healthcare personnel during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/infection-control-recommen...

MeSH terms