Investigación en endocrinología y diabetes

Tackle the Superbug Antimicrobial Resistance before it kills

Sonu Baisoya

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) increasing at alarming rate both
in the community and in hospitals, now becoming a serious threat to
global public health. By 2050, It is estimated that 10 million people
will die each year if current trend rising continues at same rate; one
person dying every three second if there is no action taken against this
bad-bug. Bacterial infections are the highest burden on developing
nations. In India, estimated 4.1 lakhs children aged below 5 years
die due to pneumonia annually which accounts for 25% of all child
deaths in India. All of the existing antibiotics becoming non-effective
due to emerging resistance in the nosocomial pathogens and needs
emergency measurements to tackle and combating AMR. Increased
prevalence of extended spectrum beta lactamases (ESBLs) was noted
in 1990s and now metallo-beta lactamases (MBLs) and multidrugresistant
pathogens are spreading widely, contributing major threat for
the management and treatment of ICU patients along with outpatients.
WHO highlights emergence and serious threat to the global public
health due to spreading of critical priority pathogens (Acinetobacter
baumanii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and enterobacteriaeceae) which
has been a major concern in developed and developing nations. High
rate of AMR is due to lack of surveillance mechanisms or system
for actual monitoring and its utility, ineffective healthcare facility,
hospital control policies, poor sanitation and use of antimicrobials for
animals. Cooperation and co-ordination among countries is required
to tackle the global emergence and spread of AMR. Their regulatory
bodies need national action plans to counter superbug. Antibiotic
resistance breakers (ARB) can play a vital role to combat AMR and
void the discovery of new antibiotics. Greater research and innovation
are required for development of new drugs, vaccines and diagnostic
tools for combating AMR and for a better future.