CRE is a carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae, which means it is a bacterium that has developed a strong resistance to antibiotics. The
bacteria are specifically resistant to the antibiotic carbapenem. The normal method of treating bacterial infection is through antibiotics. If you are infected with CRE, the typical course of antibiotic treatment will not be as effective on these bacteria because of their resistance to it, which means that once you are infected with this bacteria, it is notoriously difficult to treat.