This study investigated the frequency of third-generation cephalosporin resistance in Klebsiella spp. isolated from animals in Croatia and the presence of blaCTX-M genes. A total of 711 enteric bacteria were isolated from clinical samples, and Klebsiella spp. isolates accounted for 6.9% (n = 49). Thirteen Klebsiella isolates (26.5%) were ESBL producers, nine isolates from the Klebsiella pneumoniae species complex (69.2%), and four (30.8%) Klebsiella oxytoca isolates. All carried the blaCTX-M-15 gene, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing revealed them as multidrug resistant. All were resistant to all tested cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones, aminoglycosides and aztreonam, 92.3% showed resistance to tetracycline, 84.6% to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 69.2% to nitrofurantoin. No isolate showed resistance to imipenem and meropenem. It can be concluded that ESBL-producing Klebsiella expressing the blaCTX-M gene are not rare among Klebsiella isolates from animals in Croatia.
Keywords: ESBL; Klebsiella spp.; animals; blaCTX-M; multidrug resistance.