ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an integrated approach to understanding the hospital epidemiology of Acinetobacter spp. by defining the best research methods for identifying routes of cross-infection involved in such outbreaks. Acinetobacter spp. are ubiquitous organisms in nature, and can be obtained easily from soil, water and a variety of foods, including dairy products, poultry and frozen foods. Acinetobacter spp. have also been known for many years as opportunistic pathogens, but have been familiar to only a few enthusiastic microbiologists because of their relatively low virulence and confused taxonomy. However, during the last 20 years, a large number of reports of hospital-acquired infections involving Acinetobacter spp. have drawn attention to the increasing problem caused by these organisms.
