Treatment and diagnosis of severe KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae infections: a perspective on what has changed over last decades

Antimicrobial resistance is a global health threat. Among Gram-negative bacteria, resistance to carbapenems, a class of β-lactam antibiotics, is usually a proxy for difficult-to-treat resistance, since carbapenem-resistant organisms are often resistant to many classes of antibiotics. Carbapenem resistance in the Gram-negative pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae is mostly due to the production of carbapenemases, enzymes able to hydrolyze carbapenems, and K. pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-type enzymes are overall the most prevalent carbapenemases in K. pneumoniae. In the last decade, the management of severe infections due to KPC-producing K. pneumoniae KEY MESSAGES: In the last decade, the management of severe infections due to KPC-Kp has presented many peculiar challenges to clinicians worldwide. Following the introduction in clinical practice of novel β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations and novel β-lactams active against KPC-producing bacteria, the management of severe KPC-Kp infections has witnessed a remarkable evolution. Treatment of severe KPC-Kp infections is a highly dynamic process, in which the wise use of novel antimicrobials should be accompanied by a continuous refinement based on evolving clinical evidence and laboratory diagnostics.