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One hundred and twenty-six epidemiologically sequential, unrelated, carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolates from nine hospitals in six countries of South America were collected between July 2013 and June 2014. Genes coding for Ambler class D and B carbapenemases were sought by PCR. All isolates were typed using the 3-locus sequence typing and blaOXA-51-like sequence-based typing techniques. The blaOXA-23 gene was recovered in all the participating hospitals and in all the isolates of seven of nine medical centres. The blaOXA-72 gene was only recovered in the two medical centres from Guayaquil city, Ecuador. Trilocus sequence typing revealed the presence of sequence groups SG2, SG4 and SG5. blaOXA-51-like sequence-based typing revealed the presence of blaOXA-132, blaOXA-65, blaOXA-69 and blaOXA-64. Our results showed that the population of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii in South America was principally associated with ST79, ST25 and ST15 (92 %) and harboured the blaOXA-23 gene mainly. CC2 was not detected.

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Introduction: Staphylococcus aureus is considered one of the most important human pathogens, and its levels of resistance to methicillin have increased even in strains isolated from people without nosocomial risk factors. Molecular analysis is essential for understanding the patterns of dissemination. The objective of this study was to identify community-acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus (CA-MRSA) clones that infected Paraguayan children patients in two periods of time. Methodology: An observational, descriptive study was designed to determine the genetic variability of 115 isolates of CA-MRSA recovered from children who attended four reference centers in Paraguay between 2009-2010 and 2012-2013. Results: The combined use of Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE), Multi-Locus Sequencing Typing, Multi-Locus Variable Analysis (MLVA) and Spa typing techniques allowed the identification of two dominant clones: ST30-IV-t019 (77%) and ST5-IV-t311 (10%), and the establishment of the former as the leading cause of CA-MRSA infections in children during the study period. Conclusions: This is the first study that provides epidemiological information as well as microbiological and molecular characteristics of CA-MRSA isolates recovered from children from Asunción and the Central Department of Paraguay.

The antimicrobial resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to beta-lactams, aminoglycosides and ciprofloxacin was investigated in two Latin American hospitals, one in Venezuela and the other in Paraguay. The resistance of P. aeruginosa was investigated in 1,481 clinically isolated strains, 988 from Asunción and 493 from Caracas, collected between 1996 and 1999. Susceptibility was assessed by the disk diffusion method according to the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. 11.4% were resistant to cefoperazone, 11.4% to ceftazidime, 12.8% to piperacillin, 13.6% to amikacin, 18.2% to gentamicin, 11.1% to ciprofloxacin, and 6.7% to imipenem. There were significant differences in resistance patterns between isolates from Asunción and Caracas. Resistance was higher in Caracas. Despite similar antibiotic usage policies and other measures, differences in the resistance patterns of P. aeruginosa are evident in this study. The clinical and therapeutic implications of this resistance suggest the need to maintain surveillance in local settings, especially in developing countries such as Venezuela and Paraguay.

High and increasing rates of isolates resistant to TMP-SMZ and erythromycin were observed, as well as a decreasing percentage of isolates resistant to chloramphenicol. These trends highlight differences among the countries studied.