The overuse of antibiotics could have exacerbated the spread of antimicrobial resistance, according to the World Health Organization.
The World Health Organization on Friday reported “extensive” overuse of antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic that could have increased the spread of antimicrobial resistance.
The organization found that only 8% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 needed antibiotics for bacterial co-infections. However, about 75% of patients were treated with antibiotics. The highest rate of use was among people with severe or critical COVID-19 at 81% on average.
Additionally, the use of antibiotics did not improve overall clinical outcomes for COVID-19 patients, according to WHO.
“When a patient requires antibiotics, the benefits often outweigh the risks associated with side effects or antibiotic resistance. However, when they are unnecessary, they offer no benefit while posing risks, and their use contributes to the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance,” Silvia Bertagnolio of WHO said in a statement. “These data call for improvements in the rational use of antibiotics to minimize unnecessary negative consequences for patients and populations.”
The findings come from data collected from about 450,000 patients admitted to hospitals with COVID-19 across 65 countries from January 2020 to March 2023.
Antimicrobial resistance is an “urgent global public health threat” that killed at least 1.27 million people worldwide in 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Antimicrobial resistance happens when germs like bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them,” the CDC said on its website. “That means the germs are not killed and continue to grow. Resistant infections can be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to treat.”
The findings “underscore the important need to adequately resource the efforts to improve antibiotic prescribing globally,” Yukiko Nakatani of WHO said in a statement. (https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2024-04-26/who-antibiotics-overused-in-covid-19-patients-during-pandemic)
