eMedicine Specialties > Infectious Diseases > Bacterial Infections

Acinetobacter: Follow-up

Author: Burke A Cunha, MD, Professor of Medicine, State University of New York School of Medicine at Stony Brook; Chief, Infectious Disease Division, Winthrop-University Hospital
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Oct 19, 2009

Follow-up

Further Inpatient Care

Precautions should be taken to prevent colonized patients from colonizing other patients, particularly in the ICU.

Deterrence/Prevention

Although Acinetobacter colonization rarely results in infection, colonization does precede infection. Colonization in one patient may result in infection in another patient. For these reasons, every attempt should be made to isolate patients who are colonized with Acinetobacter in order to prevent other patients from becoming colonized.

Prognosis

The prognosis of Acinetobacter infection depends on the underlying health of the host and the extent of organ involvement; it is the same as for other aerobic gram-negative bacillary infections.

Miscellaneous

Medicolegal Pitfalls

Clinicians should be careful not to treat A baumannii colonization.

 


More on Acinetobacter

Overview: Acinetobacter
Differential Diagnoses & Workup: Acinetobacter
Treatment & Medication: Acinetobacter
Follow-up: Acinetobacter
References
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Further Reading

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Keywords

Acinetobacter baumannii, A baumannii, Acinetobacter lwoffi, A lwoffi, Acinetobacter infection, A baumannii infection , Acinetobacter baumannii infection , Acinetobacter pneumonia, Acinetobacter nosocomial pneumonia, Acinetobacter colonization, Acinetobacter meningitis, Acinetobacter urinary tract infection, Acinetobacter peritonitis, Acinetobacter bacteruria, Acinetobacter endocarditis, Acinetobacter cholangitis, Mima polymorpha, nosocomial pneumonia, continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, CAPD, catheter-associated bacteruria, UTI, URTI

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Contributor Information and Disclosures

Author

Burke A Cunha, MD, Professor of Medicine, State University of New York School of Medicine at Stony Brook; Chief, Infectious Disease Division, Winthrop-University Hospital
Burke A Cunha, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Physicians, and Infectious Diseases Society of America
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Medical Editor

Charles S Levy, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Section of Infectious Disease, George Washington University School of Medicine
Charles S Levy, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Physicians, Infectious Diseases Society of America, and Medical Society of the District of Columbia
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Pharmacy Editor

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD, Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine
Disclosure: eMedicine Salary Employment

Managing Editor

Richard B Brown, MD, FACP, Chief, Division of Infectious Diseases, Baystate Medical Center; Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine
Richard B Brown, MD, FACP is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Physicians, American Medical Association, American Society for Microbiology, Infectious Diseases Society of America, and Massachusetts Medical Society
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

CME Editor

Eleftherios Mylonakis, MD, Clinical and Research Fellow, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Massachusetts General Hospital
Eleftherios Mylonakis, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Association for the Advancement of Science, American College of Physicians, American Society for Microbiology, and Infectious Diseases Society of America
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Michael Stuart Bronze, MD, Professor, Stewart G Wolf Chair in Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center
Michael Stuart Bronze, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American College of Physician Executives, American College of Physicians, American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine, American Federation for Clinical Research, American Medical Association, American Society for Microbiology, Association of Professors of Medicine, Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Oklahoma State Medical Association, and Southern Society for Clinical Investigation
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

 
 
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