One of the great developments of medical science for the benefit of humanity is the invention of antibiotics. Around 1928, the British scientist Alexander Fleming discovered a naturally growing substance that was capable of eliminating bacteria and, after research and tests, he settled on the powerful antibiotic called penicillin.
Since then, scientific advances have been important in the invention of antibiotics against most infectious diseases and, today, medicine has a wide range of antibiotics, classified according to their effect, their mechanism of action, their chemical structure, etc. . There are hundreds of pathologies that are effectively treated with antibiotics and hundreds of millions of people cured annually in the world.
Unfortunately, there has been a growing bacterial resistance to antibiotics, that is, microbes become resistant to their action. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), this is one of the top 10 public health threats facing humanity.
Although the improper and excessive use of these medications is one of the factors that has led to the generation of drug-resistant pathogens, since it is common, in our country, for antibiotics to be ingested uncontrollably, without a medical prescription, evolutionary capacities also have an impact. of microbes and hospital environments. Antibiotic resistance limits the treatment of infections, affects the health of patients, but also impacts the costs of treatments and health systems.
According to the National Institute of Health (INS), during 2019 there were 4,700 deaths attributable to antibiotic resistance, while 18,200 were related.
Likewise, according to the WHO, there are 700,000 deaths annually due to infections by resistant bacteria, which could cause 10 million deaths in the next 25 years and economic losses of more than 100 billion dollars by 2050.
This public health problem must be addressed as a priority by governments, with public policy and specific plans that include greater research, epidemiological surveillance and controls on their marketing, among others, as well as citizen awareness of the responsible use of these medications.
