What happens in hospitals does not stay in hospitals: antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospital wastewater systems.
Fiche publication
Date publication
août 2016
Journal
The Journal of hospital infection
Auteurs
Membres identifiés du Cancéropôle Est :
Pr HOCQUET Didier
Tous les auteurs :
Hocquet D, Muller A, Bertrand X
Lien Pubmed
Résumé
Hospitals are hotspots for antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (ARB) and play a major role in both their emergence and spread. Large numbers of these ARB will be ejected from hospitals via wastewater systems. In this review, we present quantitative and qualitative data of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli, vancomycin-resistant enterococci and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in hospital wastewaters compared to community wastewaters. We also discuss the fate of these ARB in wastewater treatment plants and in the downstream environment. Published studies have shown that hospital effluents contain ARB, the burden of these bacteria being dependent on their local prevalence. The large amounts of antimicrobials rejected in wastewater exert a continuous selective pressure. Only a few countries recommend the primary treatment of hospital effluents before their discharge into the main wastewater flow for treatment in municipal wastewater treatment plants. Despite the lack of conclusive data, some studies suggest that treatment could favour the ARB, notably ESBL-producing E. coli. Moreover, treatment plants are described as hotspots for the transfer of antibiotic resistance genes between bacterial species. Consequently, large amounts of ARB are released in the environment, but it is unclear whether this release contributes to the global epidemiology of these pathogens. It is reasonable, nevertheless, to postulate that it plays a role in the worldwide progression of antibiotic resistance. Antimicrobial resistance should now be seen as an 'environmental pollutant', and new wastewater treatment processes must be assessed for their capability in eliminating ARB, especially from hospital effluents.
Mots clés
Extended-spectrum β-lactamase, Multidrug resistance, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Vancomycin-resistant enterococcus, Wastewater, Wastewater treatment plants
Référence
J. Hosp. Infect.. 2016 Aug;93(4):395-402