Evaluation, validation, and implementation of rapid immunochromatographic tests for use in colonization screening for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales

• Grant number: 24/07836-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: September 15, 2024
• End date: November 04, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Matias Chiarastelli Salomão
• Grantee: Matias Chiarastelli Salomão
• Host Investigator: Fernanda Constantino Chagas Lessa
• Host Institution: Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da USP (HCFMUSP). Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), United States

Abstract

Resistance to carbapenems is an increasingly frequent problem in hospitals, where carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) are among the most important agents. As a control strategy, hospitals conduct colonization screening for these agents in intensive care units (ICUs) using cultures or molecular detection of CRE in rectal swabs, tests that are time-consuming or expensive, respectively. In this study, we propose to validate an immunochromatographic test (ICT) from rectal swabs, without the need for plate culturing, comparing it with routinely used tests, culture, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR); implementing this test in routine practice and intervention in two ICUs of the hospital, measuring its impact on time to action and secondary transmission of CRE in these units.Dr. Fernanda Lessa is the responsible person at the CDC, and Dr Matias Salomão, the lead researcher for the project in Brazil.The project is divided into 5 stages, of which the first three have already been completed. The last two stages are scheduled to be completed during Dr. Matias Salomão's six-week visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, USA, for which we are requesting support from FAPESP.