Prevalence of metallo-β lactamase (MBL) producing Pseudomonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp. in a tertiary care hospital in India

SummaryObjectiveGram-negative bacteria with acquired metallo-β lactamases production have been increasingly reported in some countries, necessitating their detection. We determined the occurrence of acquired metallo-β lactamases (MBL) producing bacteria in our teaching hospital.MethodThe method employed was a rapid technique using a disk of imipenem plus 750 μg of EDTA, on Mueller–Hinton plate which was supplemented with 70 μg/ml of zinc sulfate, to differentiate MBL producing Pseudomonads and Acinetobacter.ResultOut of 200 isolates tested, 7.5% of our Pseudomonads and Acinetobacter were shown to be MBL producers.ConclusionsThough MBL prevalence is still low in our hospital set up, screening for MBL among Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter isolates should be routinely done in laboratory.