KPC-E. coli outbreak, Manchester hospitals and North West region, UK

Escherichia coli is a common cause of community and healthcare-associated infections, but also an almost invariable commensal of the human gastrointestinal tract. Carbapenem resistance in E. coli is increasing, and its stable persistence in this species would be of major concern. We describe the genomic epidemiology and infection control response to a Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-E. coli outbreak in a cardiac unit in a hospital in Manchester, UK, in the context of the wider KPC-E. coli diversity of isolates in the region and evolution and the dissemination of common KPC plasmid vectors in this species in this setting.