Bacterial Pathogenesis – Microbiology
BIOL 303 - Microbiology
Liberty University
May 18, 2024
Introduction
The development of resistance among pathogens such as bacteria and
fungi has challenged the development of safe and effective drugs.
Specifically, the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria due to excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agriculture is
posing a great danger to the survival of humanity.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Alanis asserts that, “indiscriminate and inappropriate use of antibiotics in
outpatient clinics, hospitalized patients, and in the food industry is the
single largest factor leading to antibiotic resistance” (697). The increasing
resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has significantly reduced the number
of antibiotics, which are safe and effective in the treatment of human
diseases.
Currently, health care systems and pharmaceutical companies have noted
the emergence of resistant bacteria and they have predicted the
occurrence of a ‘post-antibiotic era’, if there is no discovery of new classes
of antibiotics or control measures.
Therefore, this essay argues that the world is in the post-antibiotic era
because the development of bacterial resistance has increased
unprecedentedly and recommends enhancement of prescription in
healthcare settings, control of antimicrobials in agriculture, and design of
new drugs and vaccines as appropriate solutions.
The Development of Bacterial Resistance
Over the years, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been increasing. The
discovery of penicillin in 1928 was a milestone in the treatment of bacterial
diseases because it was a safe and effective drug against all forms of
bacteria. However, excessive use and abuse of antibiotics gradually caused
the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which have the ability to
inactivate and reduce the potency of the drug.
According to Davies and Davies, wide use of penicillin in the1930s led to
the development of resistance because of the expression of penicillinase,
an enzyme, which breaks the β-lactam ring of penicillin and inactivates it
(418).
Likewise, the discovery of streptomycin in 1944 and its extensive use in the
subsequent decades led to an increase in the resistant strains
of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Davies and Davies 419). From the use of
penicillin and streptomycin, microbiologists have discovered that bacteria
mutate constantly as an adaptive mechanism of surviving in the presence
of antibiotics in their living environment.
The declining effectiveness of antibiotics has increased morbidity and
mortality rates patients with bacterial infections over the years.
Epidemiological studies indicate that multidrug resistant strains of bacteria
have increased significantly in the present world because of the excessive
use and abuse of antibiotics in the healthcare settings and agricultural
sector (Davies and Davies 420). In the healthcare environment, nosocomial
infections have increased owing to the emergence of resistant strains of
bacteria.
Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica and gram-positive bacteria
like Staphylococcus aureus have become dominant nosocomial pathogens,
which increase morbidity and mortality of patients. Evidently, since the
incidences of nosocomial infections have increased considerably due to the
acquisition of resistance to antibiotics by bacteria, it is apparent that the
era of post-antibiotics is imminent.
Bacterial resistance threatens humanity because recent incidences have
occurred outside the healthcare settings. Alanis states that Streptococcus
pneumoniae and group A Streptococcus have developed resistance to
macrolide antibiotics and penicillin, while Staphylococcus
aureus and Enterococci have developed resistance to vancomycin (698).
These bacteria have the potential of causing community-acquired
infections, and thus, a threat to people in the communities that are at risk
of acquiring them from the healthcare settings. According to Kassakian and
Mermel, community-acquired infections such as urinary tract infections
(UTI) occur due to resistant E. coli that produce extended spectrum of
beta-lactamase (1). In this view, urinary tract infections are among the
community-acquired infections that have the potential of destroying
humanity.
The use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to the emergence of
multidrug resistant strains of bacteria, which threatens the survival of
humanity. Shea asserts that exposing microbes to antibiotics prompt them
to acquire survival mechanisms by mutating their genes and becoming
resistant (258). Since humans depend on agriculture to produce food and
the use of antimicrobials is necessary, bacteria constantly mutate to adapt
various environments owing to their exposure to antibiotics.
Evidently, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture hastens the rate
of mutation among bacteria and contributes to the emergence of virulent
strains of bacteria, which are resistant to present antibiotics, and thus,
pose a great threat to the survival of humanity. Hence, indiscriminate use
of antibiotics in the agriculture has led the world to post-antibiotic era,
which the health care systems are currently grappling to overcome.
Across the world, the health care systems are experiencing an increased
challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections owing to the enhanced
resistance to antibiotics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
indicates that penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, methicillin,
gentamycin, imipenem, ceftazidine, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin,
and cetftaroline are antibiotics, which different forms of bacteria have
developed resistance to since the 1940s (28).
The observed trend is that the excessive use and abuse of antibiotics have
led to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria. Moreover, the
available antibiotics are declining with time because pharmaceutical
companies find it expensive to design and produce because they will not
last in the market for a decade and give expected returns (Davies and
Davies 425). Therefore, it is predictable that the world is in the post-
antibiotic era because the populations continue to use and abuse
antibiotics in and out of the healthcare settings.
Solution to Bacterial Resistance
Since bacterial resistance emanate from the abuse of antibiotics in the
healthcare settings and among individuals, effective control is necessary.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regulation of
antibiotics through prescription is essential in reducing their indiscriminate
use in the health care system and among the populations (31). A significant
number of antibiotics that humans consume daily are unnecessary and
appropriate, and thus, their removal from the population is crucial to
prevent abuse.
In essence, prescription is an effective solution, which reduces accessibility
of antibiotics to individuals, who are likely to abuse. Healthcare providers
should only prescribe antibiotics to treat specific disease and administer
them appropriately in terms of route and dosage. Therefore, the health
care system in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies needs to adopt
legislations that govern the use of antibiotics among patients and general
populations.
Indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture has led to the
development of mutant microbes, which are highly resistant to antibiotics.
Shea recommends farmers to use antimicrobials judiciously in controlling
development strains of bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics (253).
Fundamentally, indiscriminate use of antibiotics in agriculture exposes
native strains of bacteria to novel chemicals and prompts them to mutate
their genes so that they can adapt to the changing environment in which
they live. Hence, agricultural sector needs to check the nature of
antimicrobials that it uses and assesses the impacts on the development of
microbial resistance before using them in food production.
Design and development of new drugs is also an effective solution that
would reverse the increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention recommends researchers to keep in
tandem with the mutation patterns and trends of bacteria, which are
evolutionary mechanisms of surviving harsh environments that they live,
in designing and developing antibiotics (31).
To design and develop effective antibiotics, pharmacologists need to
understand survival mechanisms of bacteria and track their spread across
the globe to contain their spread and prevent catastrophic events related
to resistance and infections. Production of new vaccines and antibiotics are
major approaches that health care systems can effectively apply to
suppress the spread of resistant strains of bacteria from one population to
another (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 33). Thus,
pharmacologists should design new antibiotics and vaccines periodically in
response to the trends of resistance among bacteria.
Conclusion
The increasing incidences of resistance among bacteria across the decades
since 1930s show that the current world is on the verge of post-antibiotic
era. Since different classes of antibiotics are no longer effective as they
used to be during their discovery period, the health care systems have
minimal choices of antibiotics, which they can use in treating and
preventing diverse forms of bacteria.
Since 1930s, drugs such as penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin,
methicillin, gentamycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, daptomycin, and
cetftaroline amongst others are no longer effective against harmful
bacteria. Hence, the world is gradually heading to a post-antibiotic era, if
the health care system does not put in place necessary interventions to
reverse the trends of bacterial resistance.
As solutions to the bacterial resistance, prescription of antibiotics in
healthcare settings and judicious use of antimicrobials in agriculture are
essential to prevent indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Moreover, design
and production of new drugs and vaccines is essential to keep in tandem
with the evolution of bacteria.
Works Cited
Alanis, Alfonso. “Resistance to Antibiotics: Are We in the Post-Antibiotic
Era.” Archives of Medical Research 36.6 (2005): 697-705. Print.
Davies, Julian, and Dorothy Davies. “Origin and Evolution of Antibiotic
Resistance.” Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews 74.3 (2010):
417-433. Print.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antibiotics resistance threats
in the United States. 2013.
Kassakian, Steven, and Leonard Mermel. “Changing epidemiology of
infections due to extended spectrum beta-lactamase producing
bacteria.” Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control 3.9 (2014): 1-6.
Print.
Shea, Kevin. “Antibiotic resistance: What is the impact of agricultural uses
of antibiotics on children’s health?” Pediatrics 112.2 (2003): 253-258.
Print.
