Antimicrobial resistance is not a silent pandemic

Shobha Shukla– CNS
A collage of people with a logo Description automatically generated Antimi- crobial Resistance directly kills more than 1 million people and is associated with almost 5 million deaths every year, that are expected to increase by 50% in the next 25 years. It also threatens our economies, with an estimated global annual cost of up to US$ 3.4 trillion by 2030 and 28 million people pushed to poverty by 2050. Every death and suffering due to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is unacceptable and is essentially preventable.
Human health and AMR
Thomas Joseph, Head, AMR Awareness, Campaigns and Advocacy, at the World Health Organization (WHO), and Chairperson of AMR Awareness Working Group for the Quadripartite Joint Secretariat on AMR, explains that antimicrobials are different kinds of medicines- like antibiotics which treat infections caused by bacteria like TB; antiviruses which treat infections caused by viruses like HIV; anti parasitics that treat infections caused by parasites like malaria; antifungals that treat infections caused by fungi like ringworm. When these medicines stop working we say antimicrobial resistance occurs. In other words, AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to medicines. As a result, infections (sometimes even minor ones) become difficult or even impossible to treat.
Speaking at the 4th Edition of the Annual Global Media Forum around World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW), Thomas listed the drivers of AMR. Misuse and overuse of anti-microbials; lack of access to quality, medicines, vaccines and diagnostics; lack of access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene; poor infection and disease prevention and control in healthcare facilities; improper waste disposal by healthcare facilities, pharmaceutical units and farms; coupled with lack of awareness and knowledge- all of these contribute to AMR and lead to increase in sickness, morbidity and mortality in humans and animals, as well as huge economic and productivity losses and increased healthcare expenditure, he said.
AMR is reversing the gains made by modern medicine
It threatens our ability to treat common infections and to perform life-saving procedures including cancer chemotherapy and caesarean section, hip replacements, organ transplant, and other surgeries.
“The problem is further compounded by the use of substandard and falsified medicines which are widely prevalent, especially in low and middle- income countries. Substandard and falsified medicine is a form of misuse that is often invisible to the provider,” opined Alexandra Cameron, Unit Head, Impact Initiatives and Research Coordination, Antimicrobial Resistance Division, WHO.
She pointed out that overuse of antimicrobials can also lead to medicine stock outs, making effective treatments unavailable to other patients who need them desperately.
(To be contd)