Abstract
Multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRP) is one of the most important pathogens in hospital infection control. Rapid and efficient methods of detecting MDRP are needed because early recognition of MDRP colonization/infection is important in the prevention of MDRP nosocomial spread. We evaluated the fundamental performance of CHROMagarTM MDRP medium, a novel chromogenic agar medium, in the detection of MDRP. We cultured 31 P. aeruginosa and 30 other Gram-negative bacilli that were resistant to one or more of the following antibiotics on CHROMagarTM MDRP medium: imipenem, ciprofloxacin and amikacin. As a result, all 8 isolates of MDRP were observed as blue-green colonies on the medium, although some of the non-MDRP P. aeruginosa isolates also grew. Among the bacteria other than P. aeruginosa, 8 of 30 strains were recovered. The observed colonies were easily distinguished from that of P. aeruginosa by the difference of color. Thus, our data suggest that CHROMagarTM MDRP medium could be highly useful as a screening tool for detecting MDRP although antimicrobial susceptibility testing is necessary for confirmation.
