Nearly all countries overuse antibiotics that fuel resistance, study finds

A new study published in The Lancet Public Health reveals that 99% of countries overuse certain antibiotics that contribute most to antimicrobial resistance. Analyzing data from 186 territories, researchers from the universities of Oxford, London, and Pennsylvania developed a framework to estimate optimal antibiotic use based on local infection rates and resistance levels. Source: elcaribedr

Key findings

• Almost three-quarters of the 67 countries with available data use more antibiotics overall than necessary. Source: infobae
• 99% of countries overuse "watch" antibiotics, which are more potent and should be reserved for specific infections. Overuse of this category is the main driver of resistance. Source: diariolibree
• More than half of countries underuse "reserve" antibiotics, the last-resort treatments for drug-resistant infections, leaving patients vulnerable. Source: infobae

What's next

The World Health Organization's AWaRe classification groups antibiotics into Access, Watch, and Reserve. In 2024, the UN set a target that 70% of global antibiotic use should come from the Access category by 2030. The study estimates that 77% of treatments in 2019 should have been Access antibiotics, supporting this goal. The authors call for policies to reduce unnecessary prescribing while improving access for those in need. Source: elcaribedr