What is antibiotic resistance?
How can it be avoided or prevented?
Antibiotic medicines are used to kill bacteria that can cause infection and many different diseases. It is one of the best medicines that help maintain human health and the immune system, because it has effectively contributed to the elimination or elimination of many harmful bacteria to humans.
But, recently, the term antimicrobial resistant bacteria has spread. It is one of the topics of greatest concern to the entire medical community. Let's learn about the causes of this resistance and how to prevent and prevent it.
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are bacteria that cannot be controlled or killed by antibiotics. In other words, they are bacteria that are able to survive and even reproduce in the presence of an antibiotic.
Antimicrobial resistance is a serious public health problem. But it can be prevented by decreasing and overprescribing these unnecessary antibiotics, correct use of prescribed antibiotics, good hygiene and infection control.
Some bacteria are naturally resistant to some antimicrobials. For example, benzylpenicillin has very little effect on most organisms in the gut or GI tract.
Types of antibiotic-resistant bacteria
Some bacteria have developed resistance to the antibiotics that were previously used to treat them. For example, Staphylococcus aureus (Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA) and Neisseria gonorrhea (the cause of gonorrhea) are almost always resistant to benzylpenicillin. In the past, penicillin controlled these infections well.
The most serious concern for antimicrobial resistance is that some bacteria have become resistant to nearly all readily available antimicrobials. These bacteria are capable of causing serious illness, threatening human health. Examples include:
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE).
Multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB).
Carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE).
Ways to prevent antibiotic resistance
The most important ways to prevent antimicrobial resistance are:
Underprescribing or overprescribing unnecessary antibiotics. For example, they should not be prescribed in viral infections. Since antibiotics do not work against viruses.
Take the full course of any antibiotic your doctor has prescribed so that it is fully effective and does not cause future resistance.
Practice good hygiene: eg, washing hands and using appropriate infection control measures.
Transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospitals
Common ways that bacteria are transmitted from person to person include:
Contact with contaminated surfaces such as doorknobs and tables.
Contact with contaminated equipment, such as stethoscopes and blood pressure devices.
Infection control in hospitals
These precautions must be followed in all hospitals to control infection, and include:
Good personal hygiene: such as,
Wash hands before and after touching the patient.
Constantly sanitizing hands with sterilizers or alcohol.
Use protective equipment: such as gloves, gowns, masks and goggles.
Dispose of sharp tools properly.
sterilization techniques.
Implementing these standard precautions reduces the risk of person-to-person transmission, even in high-risk situations.
Additional precautions
Additional precautions are used in case of highly contagious diseases. Microorganisms can be classified as high-risk if:
The route of transmission makes it more contagious: that is, it may spread through contact with a sick person or through the air.
It is caused by bacteria that are resistant to antimicrobials.
Resistant to standard sterilization procedures.
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria can also be passed from person to person within the community. Therefore, it is recommended to wash your hands well and frequently and to stay home when you feel sick.