ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE TRENDS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO VANCOMYCIN RESISTANCE AMONG DIFFERENT SPECIES OF ENTEROCOCCI

Abstract

Enterococci present a therapeutic challenge because of their resistance to a vast array of antimicrobial drugs and the propensity of Enterococci to acquire resistance. Thousand clinical specimens were collected from two tertiary care hospitals in Kerala. Enterococci were isolated and identified from clinical specimens by conventional methods. Antibiotic resistance and MIC were detected. Vancomycin resistant genes were confirmed by PCR and broth mating was performed to detect resistance gene transfer. Of the isolates E.faecalis was the predominant species followed by E.faecium, E.gallinarum, E.avium, E.mundtii  and E.raffinosus .Multidrug resistance was demonstrated by most of the isolates. Among the six vancomycin resistant E.faecium isolates, three were of vanA and three vanB phenotypes. VanB resistant genes were located on plasmid and were transferred to recipients through conjugation. The present study reveals the emergence of transferrable vancomycin resistance from this part of the country.