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Written By: Editorial Team | Updated : May 1, 2014 12:26 PM IST
A new report by the WHO shows how antibiotic resistance has become a serious threat around the world and has the potential to affect anyone irrespective of region or age. Antibiotic resistance when bacteria change so antibiotics no longer work in people who need them to treat infections is now a major threat to public health.
'Without urgent, coordinated action by many stakeholders, the world is headed for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and minor injuries which have been treatable for decades can once again kill,' says Dr Keiji Fukuda, WHO's Assistant Director-General for Health Security. 'Effective antibiotics have been one of the pillars allowing us to live longer, live healthier, and benefit from modern medicine. Unless we take significant actions to improve efforts to prevent infections and also change how we produce, prescribe and use antibiotics, the world will lose more and more of these global public health goods and the implications will be devastating.'
The report found that resistance occurring in across many different infectious agents like in various kinds of bacteria like diarrhoea, pneumonia, UTI, gonorrhoea and more. The results are cause for high concern, documenting resistance to antibiotics, especially 'last resort' antibiotics, in all regions of the world.
Key findings of the report:
Ways to fight antibiotic resistance
The report reveals that key tools to tackle antibiotic resistance such as basic systems to track and monitor the problem show gaps or do not exist in many countries. While some countries have taken important steps in addressing the problem, every country and individual needs to do more.
Other important actions include preventing infections from happening in the first place through better hygiene, access to clean water, infection control in health-care facilities, and vaccination to reduce the need for antibiotics. WHO is also calling attention to the need to develop new diagnostics, antibiotics and other tools to allow healthcare professionals to stay ahead of emerging resistance.
This report is kick-starting a global effort led by WHO to address drug resistance. This will involve the development of tools and standards and improved collaboration around the world to track drug resistance, measure its health and economic impacts, and design targeted solutions.
The situation in India
India which has the highest burden of infectious diseases is among the highest users in the world. The major issue in India, according to the report is that there is poor regulation of the medical sector, particularly in the prescription of medicines. "There is also a lack of knowledge among medical practitioners as well as the public on rational use of antibiotics. The health sector in India needs improved management of the health care delivery systems, both public and private, which will minimize conditions favourable for the development of drug resistance," it said. The study said that if uncontrolled, antimicrobial resistance will eventually result in lack of effective tools that can be used to control infectious diseases in the community and lead to poor health outcomes in the general population. n India, besides the daunting multi-drug resistance of tuberculosis, emerging resistance to the new generation anti-malarial medicines such as artemisinin, which has been documented in the neighbouring countries of southeast Asia, are also of grave concern, it said.
What are antibiotics?
Antibiotics are medications that are prescribed to treat bacterial infections. They either slow down the growth of the infectious organisms or kill them. An antibiotic's efficacy depends on various factors like host defense mechanism, the infection's location and properties of the antibiotic. Antibiotics can be administered orally, through injections or by topical application of creams and lotions. Oral antibiotics are prescribed to treat infections of the respiratory tract and digestive tract and urinary tract infections, etc. They are used in diseases to treat diseases like pneumonia and tuberculosis. Topical antibiotics are prescribed for mild to moderate skin infection and acne. Once prescribed, it is important to complete the course of antibiotics as recommended by the doctor. Non-compliance to the course of antibiotics makes the disease causing bacteria resistant to those antibiotics, rendering them ineffective. This section will answer all your queries on antibiotics: for ex: when should you take antibiotics for cough and cold and are antibiotics against cough actually bad for you. You can also read about antibiotic resistance in tuberculosis, antibiotics to treat gum disease and the need for warning signs on the use of antibiotics.
What is antibiotic resistance?
Microorganisms constantly evolve to efficiently adapt to new environments and antibiotic resistance is one such adaptation. The ability of microorganisms to grow in the presence of an antibiotic that would normally kill them or limit their growth is called antimicrobial resistance. The bacteria which have become resistant cause infections which cannot be treated with the usual drugs, dosages or concentrations. Bacteria which have developed resistance to multiple antibiotics are called multidrug resistant (MDR) bacteria ormore commonly, superbugs.
What causes antibiotic resistance?
Antibiotic resistance has become a common phenomenon due to their misuse. It could be in the form of indiscriminate self-medication, prescribing incorrect dosage, not following prescribed dosage, failure to complete the course and excessive use of prophylactic (preventive) antibiotics. Another major reason is prescription of antibiotics to treat viral infections such as the common cold.
Why is antibiotic resistance dangerous?
The availability of antibiotics changed the course of history. Many infections previously not treatable found cure. But with increasing menace of resistant bacteria we are now facing severe infections with little or no antibiotics to cure them. Existing drugs have become less effective against antibiotic resistant bacteria. Diseases that were easily treatable with mild forms of antibiotics now need to be treated with stronger combination forms of antibiotics. If you are infected with antibiotic resistant bacteria you are more likely to have longer hospital stays and more complicated treatment thereby increasing your medical costs and financial burden. You may be left with potentially untreatable infections increasing the risk of death.
Since the duration of infection is longer, there is a greater risk of spread of resistant microorganisms to others. The antibiotic resistant bacteria may compromise the success of cancer chemotherapy, organ transplantation, etc.
Common Antibiotic Resistant Infections
Tips to prevent antibiotic resistance:
Ever since Alexander Fleming accidentally discovered penicillin in 1928, antibiotics have been instrumental in saving human lives and revolutionizing medicine. If we want them to continue to do so for generations to come, we need to stop popping them every time we have a cold!
With inputs from IANS and WHO
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