Multi-Drug Resistant Acinetobacter

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in Critical Care, Pediatrics, Geriatrics.

Okay, we learned all about MRSA and VRE in nursing school, ad nauseum. But I don't remember anything about acinetobacter...micro was a while ago. Anyway, during hospital orientation the ID Control Officer told us that our hospital has a case of this multi-drug resistant strain. She said that it is resistant to every antibiotic that's out. We currently have one case on our unit. Just wondering if anybody has experience with this and can give me more information (how virulent, am I at risk, what systems affected and s/sx, ect.)?

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Specializes in Lie detection.
okay, we learned all about mrsa and vre in nursing school, ad nauseum. but i don't remember anything about acinetobacter...micro was a while ago. anyway, during hospital orientation the id control officer told us that our hospital has a case of this multi-drug resistant strain. she said that it is resistant to every antibiotic that's out. we currently have one case on our unit. just wondering if anybody has experience with this and can give me more information (how virulent, am i at risk, what systems affected and s/sx, ect.)?

one of those common bugs that is just about harmless to healthy folk but can be bad for the sick. acinetobacter | cdc

hopefully that link works...;) my first time trying to post a link here.

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Specializes in Pediatrics (Burn ICU, CVICU).
Okay, we learned all about MRSA and VRE in nursing school, ad nauseum. But I don't remember anything about acinetobacter...micro was a while ago. Anyway, during hospital orientation the ID Control Officer told us that our hospital has a case of this multi-drug resistant strain. She said that it is resistant to every antibiotic that's out. We currently have one case on our unit. Just wondering if anybody has experience with this and can give me more information (how virulent, am I at risk, what systems affected and s/sx, ect.)?

I work in a burn unit and unfortunately recently we have seen quite a bit of this. Typically, the pt spikes a high temp and can quickly become septic. We have cultured it in blood, tissues, resp, and cath tips. However, there are several different types of the MDRA (acinetobacter bauminni being one that we have seen quite a bit of) and there are drugs out there that it is not totally resisitant to...Zosyn, V-Fend, Azetronam are a few that I can recall that is effective against this particular type.

Of course, being in a burn unit, we are capable of growing lots of weird stuff. We take isolation precautions very seriously and have prevented spread this way. Unfortunately, when one is burned these types of things are very likely to occur. As far as you being at risk? Probably not if you are an otherwise healthy individual, however, don't let that stiop you from being careful.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Pediatrics, Geriatrics.

Currently, we are instituting our highest level of contact isolation for this pt. We were told that this particular strain can live on surfaces up to twenty days and the biggest concern is spreading it among the pt population (I'm in ICU). I am also concerned about bringing anything home to my new nephew...he's only two weeks old.

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Specializes in Lie detection.
currently, we are instituting our highest level of contact isolation for this pt. we were told that this particular strain can live on surfaces up to twenty days and the biggest concern is spreading it among the pt population (i'm in icu). i am also concerned about bringing anything home to my new nephew...he's only two weeks old.

we used to have it pretty frequently at my old hospital. not only in the icu but on the floors too. it was a large med. ctr. , pretty sick population.. we used standard contact isolation prec. nothing different than mrsa or vre, yellow gown and gloves, iso. room. what are you doing, anything different?

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Specializes in Critical Care, Pediatrics, Geriatrics.

gown, gloves, mask, shoe covers...anything that goes in the room stays in the room...no pens, paper, steths can go in or they don't come out.

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I work in a burn unit as well and we see a lot of this much like Razorback has described. It will disappear for a while among our patient population and then come back with a vengeance. All our patients are on isolation precautions and are screened on admission for the bacteria. We actually had one patient who came in with the resistant form...acinetobacter seems to be the new MRSA.

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Specializes in Emergency Room.

I'm not a burn nurse, but our burn unit was shut down for weeks about 2 years ago because everyone had acinetobacter. They stopped accepting new patients, and new admits went to the regular ICU (they partitioned an area). After the last pts were d/c home or died, they stripped down the entire unit and did a VERY thorough terminal clean. And guess what? Not even 24 months later, I hear we have more acintobacter up there. (All of our burn pts are on complete contact isolation) I think the above poster is correct....this is the new MRSA.

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