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Emergence of 'superbugs' is ‘outstripping’ modern medicine’s ability to fight disease
Increasing emergence of antibiotic-resistant infections has reached “unprecedented levels” and now “outstrips our ability to fight it with existing drugs”, European health experts are warning.
Each year, over 25,000 people in the EU die of bacterial infections that are able to outsmart even the newest antibiotics.
One example, as was found by Cardiff University researchers, is the New Delhi or NDM-1 superbug recently found in UK patients. The infection was brought back following trips to countries like India and Pakistan, where they had visited for medical treatment and cosmetic surgery.
These ‘superbugs’ were found to be resistant to carbapenem antibiotics, which is concerning for experts because they are some of our most powerful weapons and are used for hard-to-treat infections that evade other drugs.
The researchers, who made the discovery last August, now say bacteria with this new genetic resistance to antibiotics have contaminated New Delhi's drinking water supply, meaning millions of people there could be carriers.
“Given the growth of travel and trade in Europe and across the world, people should be aware that until all countries tackle this, no country alone can be safe,” Zsuzsanna Jakab WHO regional director for Europe, was reported as saying.
The World Health Organization says the situation has reached a critical point, and is calling for a concerted effort – or people could be dealing with the "nightmare scenario" of worldwide spread of untreatable infections.
The NDM-1 gene was found in two of the 50 drinking-water samples and 51 of 171 seepage samples.
Worryingly, the gene had spread to bacteria that cause dysentery and cholera, which can be easily passed from person to person via sewage-contaminated drinking water.
"In India, this transmission represents a serious problem… 650 million citizens do not have access to a flush toilet and even more probably do not have access to clean water," the researchers warn through a publication that appeared in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases.
The scientists are calling for urgent action by health authorities worldwide to tackle the new strains and prevent their global spread.
