Development of Two Tests for Rapid Diagnosis of Resistance to Antibiotics
Date: 18.10.2012
Two new tests capable of rapidly diagnosing resistance to wide-spectrum antibiotics have just been developed by Inserm Unit 914 "Emerging resistances to antibiotics" (Bic?tre Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bic?tre) under the direction of Professor Patrice Nordmann. Thanks to these tests, it now takes only 2 hours to identify certain bacteria that are resistant to the most used and the most important antibiotics in hospitals. The main targeted bacteria are enterobacteriacae (such as E. Coli), that are responsible for infections. With their excellent sensitivity and specificity, the use of these extremely efficient tests on a world-wide scale would allow us to adapt antibiotic treatments to the individual's needs and to be more successful in controlling antibiotic resistance, particularly in hospitals.
These works were published in September in two international reviews: Emerging Infectious diseases and The Journal of Clinical Microbiology.
