•Meropenem, ertapenem
•Broad spectrum coverage of gram positives, gram negative and anaerobes
•Spectrum of activity DOES NOT include (if drug of choice doesn't work, carbapenems likely won't either):
▫Methicillin resistant S. aureus & coagulase negative staph.
▫Ampicillin resistant enterococci
▫Occasional highly resistant gram negatives (enterics, pseudomonas)
▫Highly penicillin resistant S. pneumoniae may have reduced susceptibility
▫Stenotrophomonas maltophilia
▫Atypical organisms (mycoplasma, chlamydia, rickettsia, mycobacteria)