Ceftolozane/tazobactam is a novel antimicrobial agent with activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other common Gram-negative pathogens. In this study, we determined the antimicrobial susceptibility for a total of 149 clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa for the most commonly used antimicrobials including the new agent ceftolozane/tazobactam (C/T). Broth microdilution was performed to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration against various antimicrobials including C/T. Among the β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor, overall susceptibility was 67%, 55% and 51% for C/T, Piperacillin/Tazobactam (P/T) and Cefoperazone/Sulbactam, respectively. The variations in the susceptibility rates were noted among the three different β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitors. Interestingly, 33% susceptibility was noted for C/T against isolates that were resistant to P/T, indicating the higher activity of C/T. This finding suggests about 33% of the P/T-resistant isolates can still be treated effectively with C/T. C/T could be a better alternative for the treatment of ESBL-producing organism, and thereby usage of higher antimicrobials can be minimised.
Keywords: susceptibility; Antimicrobials; India; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; ceftolozane/tazobactam.