Individual and collective impact of Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing K. pneumoniae in patients admitted to the ICU

KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPC-Kp) raises major concerns in the context of intensive care, owing to limited treatment options and the ability to cause outbreaks in this specific setting. The objectives of this review are to give an overview of the burden of KPC-Kp in ICU patients and to discuss methodological issues and limitations regarding the quality of data available. Robust and reliable assessment of the KPC-Kp impact in the ICU should take into consideration not only characteristics of the individuals, but also of the health systems including length of stay, costs and hospital organization issues. Estimates of mortality reported in the current literature are weakened by the poor quality of adjustment for age-specific risks, co-morbidities, and appropriateness of therapy. All these confounding factors should be taken into account in models, with consideration of control groups and competing risks that is currently lacking in the published literature. Since development of antibiotic resistance is an unstoppable phenomenon and economic and human resources are facing progressive limitations due to budget constraints, cost-saving strategies targeted to avoid ICU closure, temporary limitation of admissions or delayed hospital discharge are necessary. The early identification of KPC-Kp-colonized patients through active screening strategies is likely to be the cornerstone of such a cost-saving strategy. However, there are still many open issues concerning which of these strategies are the most effective. Owing to extreme heterogeneity and several methodological flaws in current publications, future studies investigating the long-term sequelae and economic impact of KPC-Kp in the ICU are urgently needed.