Untreated infection, scenario

The lack of new discoveries in the development of antibacterial drugs, added to that antimicrobial resistance is increasing, is pushing the world towards the unthinkable scenario in which some infections may become untreatable.

Laura Piddock, University of Birmingham (United Kingdom) and the president of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, underlines the seriousness of the situation and the urgent need to take action necessary to reverse this situation. This document is published today in The Lancet Infectious Diseases , to mark the European Day Antibiotic Awareness .

We have become accustomed, says Piddock, dispose of antibiotics easily and there is a sense in society that, in fact, need for new antimicrobial agents that are effective against certain infections. A wide range of medical procedures depends on the use of antibiotics to prevent opportunistic infections. Even relatively simple procedures such as transrectal prostate biopsy, commonly used in the detection of this tumor may be complicated by the presence of antibiotic-resistant infections. "When patients are denied a new cancer treatment due to cost, society reacts angrily, but antibiotics do not perceive as essential to the health or medical practice, although these agents save many lives . "

Health threat

2 years ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the antibiotic resistance as one of the three greatest threats to health. However, both politicians and society and the media have reacted late in assessing the urgency of the situation. The European Union (EU) has launched an Action Plan for 5 years on antimicrobial resistance . Organizations such as the Infectious Diseases Society of America, Action against Antibiotic Resistance (REACT) and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy has also been actively involved with several campaigns, but much remains to be done.

The problem is particularly acute for the treatment of infections caused by gram-negative bacteria, such as those caused by Acinetobacter baumannii , Pseudomonas aeruginosa and E. coli resistant. Despite this problem, the pharmaceutical industry's interest in the investigation of new antimicrobial drugs has decreased due to a number of factors: pharmaceutical company mergers, the little benefit of these drugs, because they are usually short-term treatment and resistance may develop rapidly, and costly regulatory barriers that must be overcome for a drug is approved.

Another serious problem is the drug trials in this field: we have to recruit people who are infected but not necessarily with the bacteria to the group targeted by the medication, so this may affect the results of efficacy. However, Piddock believe that this drawback can be overcome by using evidence to identify the pathogen that causes infection and accurate eliminating those who are not infected with the bacteria under study.

To overcome these barriers the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, along with other agencies have launched an action plan antimicrobial. Piddock as an example what they are doing that organizations like GAVI and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which vaccines have been distributed worldwide success.