Some progress made in slowing antibiotic resistance-linked deaths

(HealthDay)—Progress has been made in slowing antibiotic resistance-associated deaths, but more than 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections occur each year in the United States, according to a report published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers obtained data, including from new sources, to provide the latest antibiotic resistance burden estimates for human health in the United States. Pathogen estimates were generated from more than 700 geographically diverse acute care hospitals using electronic health data.

Use of new data indicated that the 2013 report underestimated the true burden of antibiotic resistance. However, deaths decreased by 18 percent since the 2013 report, supporting the use of prevention efforts. According to the 2019 report, more than 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections occur in the United States each year, resulting in more than 35,000 people dying. In addition, in 2017, 223,900 cases and 12,800 deaths resulted from Clostridioides difficile, which is caused by the same factors driving antibiotic resistance. Concern was expressed regarding increasing resistant infections in the community, such as those associated with drug-resistant gonorrhea and extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae, which has increased since 2000. Other concerning threats include erythromycin-resistant group A Streptococcus and clindamycin-resistant group B Streptococcus.

"As detection and surveillance capabilities increased, awareness of the scope and complexity of antibiotic resistance has also grown," the authors write. "Together, more action is needed across settings, industries, and countries to fully protect people from antibiotic resistance threats."

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