Antibiotic Resistance - Term Paper Example

Antibiotic Resistance Present and future medical advances are now threatened by a potential period of post-antibiotics. Serious insinuations are observed due to the increment in resistant bacteria in different parts of the world, which are consistent with the development of new antibiotics that has shown a downward trend. Dramatically, possibilities of effective treatment of infectious diseases are reduced by the resistance bacteria, and the risks of impediments related to the disease are multiplied. In the result, patients confront a fatal outcome due to the blood infections. In addition, worsened situations are confronted by the patients that have weak immune system, such as patients having cancer, HIV patients, skinny children, etc. Additionally, it is observed that advanced medical procedures are jeopardized by the antibiotic resistance. Specifically, processes like prostheses implants and organ transplantations require crucial antibiotics for the safety of patients, and antibiotic resistance results in the fatal outcomes of these processes. (National Research Council, pp. 49-50) In the result, twenty percent of global deaths are occurring due to the antibiotic resistance during the treatment of infectious diseases. According to the statistics for the year 2005, more than four million people die due to the antibiotic resistance during the treatment of respiratory infections in different parts of the globe every year. In this regard, healthcare and medicines are now available in increased access, in order to prevent such worsening number of deaths around the world. However, antibiotics are resisted by a huge wave of bacteria that is spreading and emerging in different parts of the globe, which has complicated such matter, as a number of countries have shown unavailability of second and third line of antibiotics in case of antibiotics resistance during the treatment. Moreover, field of antibiotic resistance is confronting serious problems due to unavailability of concrete knowledge and indistinctness of international response regarding the matter. In this regard, it is very imperative that global society should be aware of such complicated matter that needs urgent attention, in order to reduce and avoid future fatal consequences related to the antibiotic resistance in different parts of the globe. (Goode, pp. 54-56) In the late 1940s, English hospitals detected unresponsive injuries of Staphylococcus bacteria, which resulted in a number of infections that may require hospital care. Such detection was observed ten years after the introduction of penicillin in the world market. The utilization of antibiotics resulted in the beginning of a biological evolution in the human race that acquired resistance against the antibiotics naturally. Ten years later, a Boston hospital issued a report regarding the second generation of penicillin in response to the antibiotics resistance that was detected in the English hospitals. In addition, the Boston hospital also identified and studied other strains that were created due to the methicillin resistance. Since the 1980s, a number of countries have identified methicillin-resisted strains due to the utilization of antibiotics during different treatments. (Galley, pp. 40-43) During these years, different other bacteria were identified that resisted modern antibiotics, such as Acinetobacter and Stenotrophomonascan, which could only be treatment by an old antibiotic that was rejected in the past due to its toxic effects. On global level, severe infections were caused by some other pathogens that resisted antibiotics at escalating levels, such as Salmonella and Shigella. Such antibiotics-resisted bacteria affected treatments that involved children. (Finn, pp. 23-25) In some of the Asian countries, two or more antibiotics were resisted by the strains caused by abovementioned bacteria. Resistant bacteria cannot be prevented by a single country on its own. Both present and future generations are affected by the antibiotic resistance, which has now become a mounting international problem. Easy nationwide spread of resistance can occur, if the development of resistance is occurred in one part of the country. In the result, the range of infectious diseases has become widened due to present trend of globalization that involves increased number of migration, as well as, travel from one part to other parts of the globe. For instance, a number of countries like the United States, Chile, Argentina, and Malaysia identified a resistant strain of Streptococcus pneumonia that was identified in Spain. (Knobler, pp. 82-85) Such results show that antibiotics resistance cannot be avoided on national scale, and requires international awareness and response. Although industrialized countries have documented more cases of antibiotic resistance, the developing world is also affected by this risk; however, proper identification sources are unavailable in these countries. Another major drawback of unresponsive attitude of developing world is its unaffordable costs of research in the field of antibiotic resistance. Therefore, a number of factors are involved in the serious complication and fatal effects of antibiotics resistance during the different treatments of infectious diseases. (Gould, pp. 21-27) The introduction of penicillin was followed by a methodical recording of biological compounds that were involved in any kind of antibiotic activity. New categories of antibiotics were developed with the help of studying substances that utilize different mechanisms to attack bacteria, as compared with the existing substances. Such studies were carried out specifically by the pharmaceutical industry in the developed countries, and medical professionals started utilizing such antibiotics in their clinical practices. For many years, the pharmaceutical industry has played a vital and crucial role in the development of antibacterial drugs required for medical needs of the society. In other words, the interests of pharmaceutical industry and the society created a long-lasting relationship forming an obvious symbiosis. In the 1970s, existing products were started tuning by the industries, and the innovative research related to the development of new range of antibiotics diminished in most parts of the globe. As acceleration of antibiotics resistance was observed, the abovementioned symbiosis started breaking down due to unresponsive attitude in terms of research. (Pomeroy, pp. 49-52) Utilization of antibiotics results in the natural process of resistance, which can be stated as a biological outcome. The emergence and selection of resistant bacteria is increased, as the utilization of drugs is increased in a patient. It is observed that the global utilization of antibiotics has increased by ten percent since last decade, which has resulted in a significant acceleration of antibiotic resistance. One of the advantages of antibiotics is that it prevents future consequences of disease that are confronted by the patients. However, it is indicated by the studies that a huge number of people utilize antibiotics because of incorrect indications and prescriptions, which may show fatal outcomes. A number of studies have been carried out to understand and identify the factors that cause such an accelerated utilization of antibiotics around the world. It was indicated by such studies that economic incentives by specific antibiotics result in their utilization. (Gillespie, pp. 60-63) On the other hand, advertisement and benefits to the prescribers increase the utilization of antibiotics. Moreover, health staff and pharmacists often do not take required level of training, and thus, may contribute in the utilization of antibiotics that is the major factor of its resistance in different parts of the world. In the United States, four times higher consumption of antibiotics is reported, as compared with some of the European countries like France, Netherlands, etc. Nowadays, complex relationship is created between the utilization of antibiotics and their resistance. Various experts have indicated that underuse of antibiotics due to its inaccessibility may result in reduction of its resistance, which has not been accepted by a number of medical experts in the field. The rate of selection of resistant bacteria is increased by the enhancement of therapeutic success by the utilization of universal antibiotic agents. (DIANE, pp. 77-78) Additionally, sub-optimal concentrations of antibiotics are contributed by the utilization of substandard drugs, which should be prevented by the medical associations of different countries. Statistics have shown that more than fifty-five percent of antibiotics are purchased by the private companies worldwide, which does not require any prescriptions. Moreover, most of the antibiotics are utilized for the one-day treatment, which is one of the factors of lack of serious response from the researchers. For many years, antibiotic resistance has been considered a major health problem by the medical professionals. Several international organizations have carried out research on this issue; however, one-day magnitude of such issue has resulted in its non-serious response from a number of organizations. (Hardy, pp. 89-90) Still, it is a threat to global health, and several reasons are involved in the development of antibiotics resistance around the globe. Although the consequences are still unclear, it is very imperative that more data should be developed regarding the resistant bacteria, which may result in fatal outcomes in the future. In this regard, it is very essential that action should be taken international and collectively. It is hoped that the paper will be beneficial for the better understanding of antibiotic resistance by the students, teachers, experts, as well as, nonprofessionals. References Adam Finn. (2004). Hot Topics in Infection and Immunity in Children. Springer. Claire Pomeroy. (2000). Management of Antimicrobials in Infectious Diseases. Humana Press. DIANE. (2004). Impacts of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. DIANE Publishing. Helen F. Galley. (2001). Antibiotic Resistance and Infection Control. BMJ Books. Ian M. Gould. (2005). Antibiotic Policies. Springer. Jamie Goode. (1997). Antibiotic Resistance: Origins, Evolution, Selection, and Spread. J. Wiley. National Research Council. (2006). Treating Infectious Diseases in a Microbial World. National Academies Press. S. H. Gillespie. (2001). Antibiotic Resistance. Humana Press. Simon P. Hardy. (2002). Human Microbiology. CRC Press. Stacey Knobler. (2003). the Resistance Phenomenon in Microbes and Infectious Disease. National Academies Press. 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