fa تحقيقي Original Paper <div><strong>ABSTRACT</strong><br> <strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Background and Objectives</strong><strong><span dir="RTL">:</span></strong> <em>Acinetobacter </em><em>baumannii</em> is an opportunistic pathogen associated with nosocomial infections. Treatment of infections caused by this bacterium has become challenging due to increasing rate of resistance to a wide range of antibiotics such as carbapenems. One of the main mechanisms of resistance to carbapenems is the production of carbapenemase. The objective of this study was to evaluate antibiotic resistance patterns and frequency of carbapenemase-producing <em>A. </em><em>baumannii</em> strains using the CarbAcineto NP Test<strong>.</strong><strong><span dir="RTL"></span></strong><br> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <strong>Methods: </strong>In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 130 <em>A. </em><em>baumannii</em> isolates were collected from clinical specimens of teaching hospitals in Zahedan in 2016. After determining the antibiotic resistance patterns, all <em>A. baumannii</em> isolates were examined using the phenotypic method of CarbAcineto NP test to evaluate production of carbapenemase enzymes<span dir="RTL">.</span><br> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <strong>Results: </strong>Based on the antibiogram results, more than 90% of the isolates were resistant to the antibiotics tested in this study. However, the lowest rate of resistance was observed against colistin, minocycline, tigecycline and doxycycline, respectively. Based on the results of the CarbAcineto NP test, 96% of carbapenem-resistant strains were positive for the production of carbapenemases<span dir="RTL">.</span><br> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <strong>Conclusion: </strong>Due to the high resistance of <em>A. baumannii</em> to carbapenems, they are not currently suitable for the treatment of infections caused by this bacterium. However, since most carbapenem-resistant strains are susceptible to colistin, minocycline, tigecycline, and doxycycline, these antibiotics or their combination are recommended for the treatment of the infections caused by the resistant strains. Rapid identification of carbapenemase-producing bacteria using efficient methods such as CarbAcineto NP test is essential to prevent their spread, particularly in hospitals.<br> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <strong>KEYWORDS: </strong><em>Acinetobacter baumannii</em>, Carbapenemase, CarbAcinetoNP Test.</div> Acinetobacter baumannii, Carbapenemase, CarbAcinetoNP Test. 13 19 http://mlj.goums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1-511&slc_lang=fa&sid=1 Shahram shahraki zahedani 100319475328460014215 100319475328460014215 No Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran Rogaye Javadi r.javadi3599@gmail.com 100319475328460014216 100319475328460014216 Yes Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran