Antimicrobial Resistance Week 2021- “Antimicrobials: Handle with care”

By Nzeribe Emmanuella (11/10/21)

For the longest time, there has been a war between humans and superbugs. The rapid emergence of resistance of the microorganisms especially bacteria towards antimicrobial agents has endangered the efficacy of already existing antimicrobials. Many decades ago, after antibiotics have been given for bacterial infections, Infections became a serious threat to human health. The cause of Antibiotic resistance has been attributed to the misuse of antibiotics and the challenge of new drug development from the Pharmaceutical industry.

The era of antibiotics started with the discovery of Penicillin by Sir Alexander Fleming in the year 1928. In the 1940s, antibiotics were prescribed to treat very serious infections of which penicillin came to the rescue especially during World War II. [1] Meanwhile not too long, there was resistance to Penicillin. Then newly synthesized Beta-lactam antibiotics were discovered to save patients. The first-ever incidence of the methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was seen in the United Kingdom and United states in 1962 and 1968 respectively. Vancomycin was found to be effective for MRSA infections in clinical settings which its resistance was not readily seen. However, from the late 1960s to the 1980s; a lot of antibiotics were introduced to treat infections. Decades down the line, antimicrobial resistance still poses a huge threat all across the globe. [1]

Alexander Fleming raised an alarm in the year 1945 about antibiotic overuse and clearly, this overuse has driven the evolution of resistance. Antibiotics have helped extend life expectancy by changing the course of bacterial infections. Antibiotics have saved the lives of patients with chronic diseases like diabetes, end-stage renal disease, rheumatoid arthritis and prevented acute illnesses from getting worse.

The major cause of antibiotic resistance is simply misuse which could either be underuse or overuse of antibiotics. These stem from lack of knowledge, self-medication, irrational prescribing, extensive agricultural use, and regulatory barriers. [2]

The development of new antibiotics was a good strategy to combat resistance in the past but for over a decade now, the introduction of new antibiotics has reduced. Pharmaceutical companies have had to weigh the cost-benefit ratio of investing in the development of new antibiotics which are used for a shorter course and are likely to get resistance over neuromuscular or cancer medicines.

In addition, other antimicrobials like antifungals, antivirals, antiparasitic agents are also being misused, although not often talked about but should also be preserved and proper education should be given to patients and prescribers to prevent widespread resistance.

World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) is a major global campaign that takes place annually to raise awareness of AMR and encourage best practices among the public, health workers, and policymakers to slow the development and spread of drug-resistant infections. As we celebrate the World Antibiotic Awareness Week this November, it is important for everyone to bear in mind that rapidly emerging resistant bacteria are threatening the extraordinary health benefits achieved by antibiotics hence there is an urgent need to preserve these benefits together with the antibiotics.

It is now a global threat that depicts the worldwide misuse of antibiotics and definitely requires a multisectoral action in order to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs). As young pharmacists, we have a lot of work to do when it comes to public education and also educating farmers on the rational use of antibiotics.

References:

1. Spellberg B, Gilbert DN. The future of antibiotics and resistance: a tribute to a career of leadership by John Bartlett. Clin Infect Dis. 2014;59 (suppl 2):S71–S75.

2. Golkar Z, Bagazra O, Pace DG. Bacteriophage therapy: a potential solution for the antibiotic resistance crisis. J Infect Dev Ctries. 2014;8(2):129–136. 13.

3. Consultancy: World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2021. Available at https://www.who.int/news-room/articles-detail/consultancy-world-antimicrobial-awareness-week-2021