Antibiotic resistance could cause a global health crisis

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are becoming a severe threat to global health, with potentially catastrophic consequences.

New research led by Northern Arizona University (NAU) reveals that infection-related deaths could surge due to multidrug-resistant and pan-resistant bacteria. This isn’t a question of if, but when, warns the study’s lead author, Benjamin Koch.

Published in the journal Communications Medicine, the study highlights the growing danger of antibiotic resistance. As antibiotic usage increases worldwide, bacteria are evolving to resist multiple antibiotics, leading to multidrug-resistance.

What’s even more troubling is that pan-resistant bacteria could emerge, marking a turning point in global health. Pan-resistant bacteria are immune to all known antibiotics.

“Multidrug-resistance is bad, but once a pathogen gains resistance to all known antibiotics, known as pan-resistance, a dramatically rapid shift, rather than a gradual rise in public health impacts, can be expected,” said Koch, a senior research scientist at NAU’s Center for Ecosystem Science and Society (Ecoss).

What is antibiotic resistance?

Antibiotic resistance is when bacteria evolve to survive treatments meant to kill them. Antibiotics are medicines used to treat bacterial infections. Over time, certain bacteria adapt and develop defenses against these drugs.

This resistance often arises from improper or excessive use of antibiotics. For example, taking antibiotics for viral infections, not completing prescribed doses, or overusing them in farming can all contribute.

When bacteria become resistant, they continue to grow and spread despite antibiotic treatment, making infections harder or even impossible to cure.

This problem isn’t limited to just one country or region. Resistant bacteria can spread globally, threatening public health and making previously treatable illnesses – like pneumonia or urinary tract infections – more dangerous.

To address this, we need better antibiotic use, policies, and the development of new medicines.

What happens when pan-resistance strikes

Using hypothetical models, researchers studied the potential impact of a pan-resistant strain of E. coli on sepsis deaths in the United States. By analyzing long-term data on sepsis incidence, mortality rates, and treatment outcomes, they found shocking results.

Their models predict that sepsis deaths could increase by 18 to 46 times within just five years after the introduction of a pan-resistant strain. This hypothetical strain doesn’t exist yet, but the rapid evolution of bacteria suggests it may be inevitable.

“With the available data, researchers aren’t able to predict the timing of pan-resistance with any accuracy; it could be in a year, or it could be in a century,” Koch noted.

Global health equalizer

Antibiotic resistance doesn’t discriminate. Unlike other health crises that disproportionately affect lower-income populations, pan-resistance would erase advantages like access to superior health care or varied antibiotic options.

People in both high-income and low-income countries would face the same grim outcomes from infections that were once easily treatable.

What can be done about antibiotic resistance?

The researchers emphasize that while the threat is grave, steps can be taken to reduce the risk. Governments, industries, and individuals have crucial roles to play.

Governments must enforce stricter policies around the use of antibiotics in both human and veterinary medicine. They must also incentivize the development of new antibiotics – an area of research that has slowed in recent years.

“There are technologies that could monitor the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance,” said Koch. Investments in these innovations could provide early warnings and help contain outbreaks.

Responsible antibiotic use

On an individual level, the proper use of antibiotics is critical. Koch advises using antibiotics only when prescribed by a health care provider and avoiding unnecessary usage.

Supporting policies that promote antibiotic stewardship can help curb the spread of resistance.

Need for urgent action

The rise of pan-resistant bacteria could redefine global public health challenges.

“We must reduce the forces that currently promote the evolution and dissemination of antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Globally, this means improving antibiotic stewardship in human and veterinary medicine and in food-animal production,” Koch concluded.

The findings highlight the urgency of tackling antibiotic resistance before it spirals out of control. With coordinated action, the global community can slow the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and potentially save millions of lives.

The study is published in the journal Communications Medicine.

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