Hospital outbreak caused by a carbapenem-resistant strain of Acinetobacter baumannii: patient prognosis and risk-factors for colonisation and infection

Between October 2001 and August 2002, 30 hospital patients became infected or colonised by a multi-resistant (including to carbapenems) epidemic strain of Acinetobacter baumannii (AbMR) in a hospital outbreak. This study analysed the risk-factors associated with acquisition of this epidemic strain and investigated the prognosis of patients infected by AbMR, with the aim of elucidating factors which lead to mortality. A case-control study of the acquisition of AbMR in patients infected or colonised in the hospital outbreak was performed. Independent risk-factors leading to death were studied by logistic regression analysis. Multivariate analysis of the risk-factors for colonisation/infection with AbMR revealed an independent association with the presence of an arterial catheter (OR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.03- 1.25) and administration of imipenem as monotherapy (OR, 11.12; 95% CI, 2.33-53.09). Multivariate analysis of the prognostic features leading to mortality revealed a significant association with hypotension or shock (OR, 24.63; 95% CI, 1.56-387.56) at the time of bacterial isolation.