Carbapenem-resistant Organisms

Testing site      

Alaska State Public Health Laboratory – Anchorage 

Anchorage Lab Request Form 

Diseases 

• Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) 
• Carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (CRPA) 
• Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) 

Organisms 

• Enterobacterales 
• Pseudomonas aeruginosa 
• Acinetobacter baumannii 

Test Method 

• Carba-R polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect carbapenem-resistance genes 
• Modified Carbapenem Inactivation Method (mCIM) for carbapenemase production 
• Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method for resistance confirmation of carbapenem and cephem drugs  

Availability

Routine testing   

Specimen type 

• Pure isolates  
• Bacterial Transport Media 

Storage and transport  

• Ship stool at ambient temperature   
• Package, label, and ship as UN3373 Biological Substance, Category B 

Ship to ASPHL, ATTN: Clinical Microbiology 

Results  

• Carba-R: Not Detected/Detected 
• MCIM: Negative/Positive 
• Kirby Bauer: Susceptible/Intermediate/Resistant 

Normal results are Not Detected, Negative, and Susceptible 

Turnaround time  

2-5 days 

Notes

 A laboratory that isolates CRE, CRPA, CRAB must submit an isolate or an aliquot of the original specimen to ASPHL. 

Resources