An increasing threat in hospitals: multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii

Acinetobacterstrains have become a cause for concern — particularly among critically ill, hospitalized patients — owing to the spread of multidrug resistance and risk of epidemics. Here, the authors discuss the current knowledge of the genusAcinetobacter, with the emphasis on the clinically most important species, Acinetobacter baumannii. Since the 1970s, the spread of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter strains among critically ill, hospitalized patients, and subsequent epidemics, have become an increasing cause of concern. Reports of community-acquired Acinetobacter infections have also increased over the past decade. A recent manifestation of MDR Acinetobacter that has attracted public attention is its association with infections in severely injured soldiers. Here, we present an overview of the current knowledge of the genus Acinetobacter, with the emphasis on the clinically most important species, Acinetobacter baumannii.