Antibiotics are among the most commonly prescribed drugs, however, they are often not optimally prescribed or misused. This was stated by health experts at a briefing on 'Antibiotic Resistance: Act Today for a Safer Tomorrow', which was arranged by Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Society of Pakistan (MMIDSP) on Wednesday.
The experts said that 71 percent of infections among new-borns in Pakistan were from Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria (ARB), whereas in India, an estimated 58,000 neonatal sepsis deaths were attributed to drug resistant infections. Dr Bushra Jamil, HOD Infectious Diseases at Agha Khan University Hospital, said: "Antibiotic resistance is the ability of bacteria to resist the effects of an antibiotic. It occurs when bacteria change in a way that reduces the effectiveness of drugs, chemicals, or other agents designed to cure or prevent infections. The resistant bacteria then survive and continue to multiply, causing more harm, and spreading to other persons as well."
Explaining the consequences, she said that some resistant infections caused severe illness and people with these infections might require increased recovery time, tend to incur increased medical expenses, or might die from the infection if not treated properly. Dr Sunil Dodani, Senior Consultant Infectious Diseases at SIUT, said that antibiotics were commonly used in animals that were used as food to prevent, control, and treat disease, and to promote the growth of food-producing animals.
"We have to ensure cautious use of antibiotics, as the misuse of antibiotics is the single most important factor leading to antibiotic resistance around the world. An antibiotic is a type of drug that kills or stops the growth of bacteria only. Antibiotics do not have any effect on viruses," he added. Dr Samreen Sarfaraz, senior Infectious Diseases Consultant at Indus Hospital, referred to a research case study according to which two million people get serious infections with bacteria every year that are resistant to one or more of the antibiotics designed to treat the infections. Besides, 23,000 people die each year as a direct result of these antibiotic-resistant infections.
The experts said that antibiotic resistance was accelerated by misuse and overuse of antibiotics, as well as poor infection prevention and control. They said that physicians, health workers, pharmacists, policy makers and agriculturists could help spread awareness about an appropriate use of antibiotic. They said that people should only use antibiotics when prescribed by a certified health professional and should always take the full prescription. Besides, people should never use left-over antibiotics and never share antibiotics with others.