In vitro double and triple bactericidal activities of doripenem, polymyxin B, and rifampin against multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli.

In vitro double and triple bactericidal activities of doripenem, polymyxin B, and rifampin were assessed against 20 carbapenem-resistant clinical isolates with different mechanisms of carbapenem resistance. Bactericidal activity was achieved in 90% of all bacteria assayed using combinations of polymyxin B, doripenem, and rifampin against five each of the carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli isolates studied. Combinations with these antibacterials may provide a strategy for treatment of patients infected with such organisms.