Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2019) 8(11): 1418-1424 1418 Original Research Article https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2019.811.166 Prevalence of Carbapenem Resistant Enterobacteriaceae in a Tertiary Care Hospital Namitha Thomas and Tarana Sarwat* Department of Microbiology, School of Medical Sciences and Research, Sharda University, Greater Noida, India *Corresponding author ABSTRACT Introduction Carbapenem resistance among Enterobacteriaceae is one of the foremost challenges that the medical world is facing since the past few years. [1] Carbapenems were suggested as the final drug of choice for treatment during the emergence of ESBLs and AmpCs, due to their unique molecular structure and wide spectrum of activity. [2] But the origin of carbapenemase enzyme in Enterobacteriaceae poses a major threat, creating a dilemma in therapeutic methods. [3] These bacteria have the potential to cause wide spread transmission of resistance even between the intestinal bacteria [4] through various intrinsic or extrinsic mechanisms. [5] One major cause of resistance in bacteria is the production of carbapenem hydrolyzing enzyme with several variants, along with porin loss, production of AmpC and acquired MBL. [6] Detection of these organisms is a difficult task due to the wide diversity in their International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 8 Number 11 (2019) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com Enterobacteriaceae which are a normal part of human gut bacteria are the common pathogens causing infections. Carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is difficult to treat due to its high level of resistance to carbapenem. The present study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae in our hospital. Out of 519 clinical isolates identified with Enterobacteriaceae, 80 (18.54%) were found to be carbapenem resistant. Imipenem showed complete resistance among CRE isolates. CRE was common in male patients (53.75%) as well as urine samples (52.1%). Escherichia coli were found as the predominant organism. This study indicates a high prevalence of CRE in our hospital emphasizing the need for implementing more effective infection control practices. Keywords Enterobacteriaceae, Carbapenem resistance, Escherichia coli, CRE prevalence Accepted: 12 October 2019 Available Online: 10 November 2019 Article Info