FACTS ABOUT ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE (AMR)
WHAT ARE ANTIMICROBIAL DRUGS?
* Destroy harmful microbes
* Antibiotics best known of them
WHAT IS ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE?
* When microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites evolve to resist the drugs
* Standard treatments become ineffective, infections persist and may spread
HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?
* Inappropriate use of medicines, such as taking substandard doses or not finishing a prescribed course of treatment
* Low-quality medicines, wrong prescriptions as well as poor infection prevention and control
WHY IS IT A PROBLEM?
* Infectious diseases may one day become uncontrollable
* New antimicrobrial drug development has slowed drastically while antibiotic use is rising
WHAT HAPPENS IF NOTHING IS DONE?
* By 2050, 10 million lives could be lost every year
* Key medical procedures - including gut surgery, caesarean sections, joint replacements, and chemotherapy - could become too dangerous to perform.
WHAT INFECTIONS SHOULD NOT BE TREATED WITH ANTIBIOTICS?
* Colds, flu, some sore throats, most coughs and bronchitis, many sinus infections and many ear infections.
