Evaluation of current activities of fluoroquinolones against gram-negative bacilli using centralized in vitro testing and electronic surveillance

Given the propensity for Enterobacteriaceae and clinically significant nonfermentative gram-negative bacilli to acquire antimicrobial resistance, consistent surveillance of the activities of agents commonly prescribed to treat infections arising from these organisms is imperative. This study determined the activities of two fluoroquinolones, levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin, and seven comparative agents against recent clinical isolates of Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia using two surveillance strategies: 1) centralized in vitro susceptibility testing of isolates collected from 27 hospital laboratories across the United States and 2) analysis of data from The Surveillance Network Database-USA, an electronic surveillance network comprising more than 200 laboratories nationwide. Regardless of the surveillance method, Enterobacteriaceae, P. aeruginosa, and A. baumannii demonstrated similar rates of susceptibility to levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin, Susceptibilities to the fluoroquinolones approached or exceeded 90% for all Enterobacteriaceae except Providencia spp. (less than or equal to 65%). Approximately 70% of P. aeruginosa and 50% of A. baumanii isolates were susceptible to both fluoroquinolones. Among S. maltophilia isolates, 50% more isolates were susceptible to levofloxacin than to ciprofloxacin. Overall, the rate of ceftazidime nonsusceptibility among Enterobacteriaceae was 8.7%, with fluoroquinolone resistance rates notably higher among ceftazidime-nonsusceptible isolates than ceftazidime-susceptible ones. Multidrug-resistant isolates were present among all species tested but were most prevalent for Klebsiella pneumoniae and Enterobacter cloacae. No gram-negative isolates resistant only to a fluoroquinolone were encountered, regardless of species. Thus, while levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin have maintained potent activity against Enterobacteriaceae, the potential for fluoroquinolone resistance, the apparent association between fluoroquinolone and cephalosporin resistance, and the presence of multidrug resistance in every species examined emphasize the need to maintain active surveillance of resistance patterns among gram-negative bacilli.