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The emergence of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae limits therapeutic options and presents a major public health problem. Resistances to carbapenems are mostly conveyed by metallo-beta-lactamases (MBL) including VIM, which are often encoded on resistance plasmids. We characterized four VIM-positive isolates that were obtained as part of a routine diagnostic screening from two laboratories in north-eastern Germany between June and August 2020. Whole-genome sequencing was performed to address (a) phylogenetic properties, (b) plasmid content, and (c) resistance gene carriage. In addition, we performed phenotypic antibiotic and mercury resistance analyses. The genomic analysis revealed three different bacterial species including C. freundii , E. coli and K. oxytoca with four different sequence types. All isolates were geno- and phenotypically multidrug-resistant (MDR) and the phenotypic profile was explained by the underlying resistance gene content. Three isolates of four carried nearly identical VIM-1-resistance plasmids, which in addition encoded a mercury resistance operon and showed some similarity to two publicly available plasmid sequences from sources other than the two laboratories above. Our results highlight the circulation of a nearly identical IncN-type VIM-1-resistance plasmid in different Enterobacteriaceae in north-eastern Germany.

Acute infection of the urinary tract is one of the most commonly encountered bacterial infections in the frail elderly population and is responsible for substantial morbidity and recurrent infections with antibiotic resistance. Although generally considered to be self-limiting without treatment or easily treated with a short antibiotic regime, urinary tract infections (UTIs) often have a dramatic history, associated with incomplete resolution and frequent recurrence. The biological complexity of the infections combined with a dramatic rise in antibiotic-resistant pathogens highlight the need for an anticipating strategy for therapy necessary for a rapid recovery. The first crucial step is the classification in asymptomatic bacteriuria or complicated pyelonephritis, on which the decision for the intensity of treatment and diagnostic effort is based. For the selection of empiric antibiotic therapy, knowledge about the predominant uropathogens as well as local resistance patterns is important. In this manner, most urinary tract infections in the elderly can be treated without greater expense.

Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is a widespread method of treatment used in approximately 10% of all patients suffering from terminal renal insufficiency. The main problem of this procedure is the increased risk of peritoneal infection. The incidence of such a peritonitis is quoted at one episode per 13-18.4 months of treatment. Candida peritonitis is a particularly severe form of CAPD peritonitis. This is a nosocomial infection with a high lethality rate of about 60%. The incidence of Candida peritonitis in CAPD patients amounts to approximately 5% of all intraabdominal infections and is on the increase. The authors describe a severe case of Candida peritonitis in a patient on CAPD. The therapeutic concept of this severe illness is illustrated.

Patients suffering from type I diabetes mellitus have a descending expectancy of life, after developing diabetic nephropathy and undergoing haemodialysis. After 3 years of haemodialysis, approximately only 40% of the patients are still alive. The only remedy of this incurable metabolic disease is the simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation. After transplantation, fungal colonization and fungal infection is a serious threat for the patient's life. In this context, it is necessary to distinguish between colonization and invasive mycosis. In the case of unsuccessful antimycotic treatment, the removal of the transplanted organ, depending on the patient's condition, may be necessary to save the patient's life.

From 1-1-1995 until 1-3-2000 4777 patients were treated in a surgical intensive care unit. 12 patients (10 male/2 female, mean age 58 years) suffered from invasive aspergillosis. One patient had a purulent descending mediastinitis with evidence of Aspergillus fumigatus in the mediastinum and in both pleural cavities. One patient got a right upper lobectomie in cause of an aspergilloma. In 10 patients a broncho-alveolar aspergillosis was proved by at least two cultures from broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) and biopsies. All our patients had a mean of 12.8 risk factors for systemic mycoses. The patients suffered from following underlying diseases: 3 x carcinoma of the esophagus (chemotherapy + radiation), 2 x ulcerative colitis, 1 x rupture of the aorta with insufficiency of the liver, 1 x acute leucosis and 1 x purulent mediastinitis. The therapy was based on infusion with amphotericin B up to 1.5 mg/kg/day in combination with flucytosine or itraconazole. In 4 patients inhalation of amphotericin B aerosol was applied. After therapeutic failure of amphotericin B-therapy 3 patients got voriconazole according to a study protocol. 10 patients died, 7 of them from their underlying disease.