Genetic Diversity of Carbapenemases-producing Acinetobacter baumannii Isolates at a Tertiary Teaching Hospital in Western India

The study highlights that colistin and minocycline are the viable antibiotics for treating carbapenem-resistant MBL-producing XDR <i>A. baumannii</i> infections. <i>^bla</i> OXA-23 is the commonest carbapenemase gene, and <i>^bla</i> VIM is the most frequently found MBL gene prevalent in our hospital and contributes to carbapenem resistance in <i>A. baumannii</i>. The study also showed a higher frequency of co-occurrence of multiple carbapenemase genes in single isolates, and most of these isolates formed biofilm. However, no statistically significant association was found between biofilm formation and carbapenemase genes in <i>A. baumannii</i>. This study emphasizes the molecular diagnostic value of carbapenemase gene detection to reduce the resistance rate in <i>A. baumannii</i> isolates.