Influence of clinical breakpoint changes from CLSI 2009 to EUCAST 2011 antimicrobial susceptibility testing guidelines on multidrug resistance rates of Gram-negative rods

Multidrug resistance (MDR) rates of Gram-negative rods were analyzed comparing CLSI 2009 and EUCAST 2011 antibiotic susceptibility testing guidelines. After EUCAST 2011 was applied, the MDR rates increased for Klebsiella pneumoniae (2.2%), Enterobacter cloacae (1.1%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (0.7%), and Escherichia coli (0.4%). A total of 24% of Enterobacteriaceae MDR isolates and 12% of P. aeruginosa MDR isolates were categorized as MDR due to breakpoint changes.