Clinical, economic and societal impact of antibiotic resistance

Abstract

The concern over antibiotic resistance has been voiced since the discovery of modern antibiotics > 75 years ago. The concerns have only increased with time, with efforts to control resistance caused by widespread overuse of antibiotics in human medicine and far more than appreciated use in the feeding of animals for human consumption to promote growth. The problem is worldwide, but certain regions and selected health care institutions report far more resistance, including strains of Gram-negative bacteria that are susceptible only to the once discarded drugs polymyxin B or colistin, and pan-resistant strains are on the rise. One of the central efforts to control resistance, apart from antimicrobial stewardship, is the development of new antimicrobial agents. This has lagged significantly over the past 10 - 15 years, for a variety of reasons; but promising new agents are being developed, unfortunately none thus far addressing all potentially resistant strains. There is the unlikely, but not unreal, possibility that we could return to a pre-antibiotic era, where morbidity and mortality rates have risen dramatically and routine surgical procedures are not performed for fear of post-operative infections. The onus of control of resistance is a moral imperative that falls on the shoulders of all.

Keywords: antibiotics; antibiotics in animal feed; misuse of antibiotics; resistance.