Antibiotic resistance
“Why are the medicines that defeated infection starting to fail?”
Root causes (expand to see solutions)
Antibiotics save lives, but every use also helps resistant bacteria survive and multiply. The more they're used, the faster resistance builds, while poor infection control lets it spread further.
What's at stake
Besides the deaths, infections that are now trivial, from a cut to a chest infection, could kill. Each becomes harder and costlier to treat, forcing a return to more toxic drugs as the last line of defence, while a single resistant strain can cross borders and species within years, making any one country's overuse a threat everywhere.
The global picture
South Asia
High severity
Heavy, often unregulated antibiotic use has bred widespread resistance.
Resistant infections are climbing in hospitals across Europe and worldwide.