Antimicrobial Activity of Ceftolozane-Tazobactam Tested Against Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa with Various Resistance Patterns Isolated in US Hospitals (2013-2016) as Part of the Surveillance Program: Program to Assess Ceftolozane-Tazobactam Susceptibility

This study evaluated the in vitro activity of ceftolozane-tazobactam and comparator agents tested against Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from hospitalized patients in the United States. Ceftolozane-tazobactam is an antipseudomonal cephalosporin combined with a well-established -lactamase inhibitor. A total of 18,960 organisms (15,223 Enterobacteriaceae and 3,737 P. aeruginosa) were consecutively collected from 32 medical centers located in all nine U.S. census divisions from 2013 to 2016. Organisms were tested for susceptibility by broth microdilution. CLSI and EUCAST interpretive criteria were used. Ceftolozane-tazobactam (94.4% susceptible), amikacin (99.0% susceptible), and meropenem (98.0% susceptible) were the most active compounds tested against Enterobacteriaceae. Among the Enterobacteriaceae isolates tested, 1.9% (n=286) were carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and 9.5% (n=1,450) exhibited an extended-spectrum -lactamase (ESBL) non-CRE phenotype. Although ceftolozane-tazobactam showed good activity against ESBL non-CRE phenotype strains of Enterobacteriaceae (87.5% susceptible), it lacked useful activity against CRE. Ceftolozane-tazobactam was the most potent -lactam agent tested against P. aeruginosa isolates, with 97.3% susceptible. Only colistin was more active, inhibiting 99.5% of isolates. Ceftolozane-tazobactam also maintained good activity against multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa, with 88.6% susceptible. Ceftolozane-tazobactam was the most active -lactam agent tested against P. aeruginosa and was more active than available cephalosporins and piperacillin-tazobactam against Enterobacteriaceae.