Detection of colonization by carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative Bacilli in patients by use of the Xpert MDRO assay.

Detecting colonization of patients with carbapenemase-producing bacteria can be difficult. This study compared the sensitivity and specificity of a PCR-based method (Xpert MDRO) for detecting blaKPC, blaNDM, and blaVIM carbapenem resistance genes using GeneXpert cartridges to the results of culture with and without a broth enrichment step on 328 rectal, perirectal, and stool samples. The culture method included direct inoculation of a MacConkey agar plate on which a 10-μg meropenem disk was placed and plating on MacConkey agar after overnight enrichment of the sample in MacConkey broth containing 1 μg/ml of meropenem. Forty-three (13.1%) samples were positive by PCR for blaKPC and 11 (3.4%) were positive for blaVIM; none were positive for blaNDM. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of the PCR assay for blaKPC were 100%, 99.0%, 93.0%, and 100%, respectively, compared to broth enrichment culture and sequencing of target genes. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of the assay for blaVIM were 100%, 99.4%, 81.8%, and 100%, respectively. Since none of the clinical samples contained organisms with blaNDM, 66 contrived stool samples were prepared at various dilutions using three Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates containing blaNDM. The PCR assay showed 100% positivity at dilutions from 300 to 1,800 CFU/ml and 93.3% at 150 CFU/ml. The Xpert MDRO PCR assay required 2 min of hands-on time and 47 min to complete. Rapid identification of patients colonized with carbapenemase-producing organisms using multiplex PCR may help hospitals to improve infection control activities.