Comparative evaluation of a chromogenic agar medium, the modified Hodge test, and a battery of meropenem-inhibitor discs for detection of carbapenemase activity in Enterobacteriaceae

Abstract

Three phenotypic methods (modified Hodge test, chromogenic agar, and meropenem discs combined with specific inhibitors) used for the detection of carbapenemase activity were tested on a panel of characterized Enterobacteriaceae expressing various β-lactamase mechanisms. Overall, the meropenem-plus-inhibitor approach was more sensitive and specific than the other methods, despite its limitation of being unable to detect class D carbapenemases.