Carbapenem resistance, mainly among Gram-negative pathogens, is an ongoing public-health problem of global dimensions. This type of antimicrobial resistance, especially when mediated by transferable carbapenemase-encoding genes, is spreading rapidly causing serious outbreaks and dramatically limiting treatment options. In this article, important key points related to carbapenem resistance are reviewed and future perspectives are discussed.
Keywords: antibiotic resistance; carbapenemases; carbapenems.