ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Antibiotic Resistance is when the medication or drug loses its ability to kill bacteria in the body. It is considered as one of the most severe threats to global health in the present time because it can affect anyone regardless of age or country. 

Antibiotics are medications that are used to prevent and cure infections acquired from bacteria. It also causes several infections such as pneumonia, gonorrhea, and tuberculosis, which makes it more difficult to cure. The medication, antibiotic, that was once enough to treat them has now become less effective. However, if the medications fail to fight back and protect the body from the bacteria that causes the infection, it becomes harder for it to treat since the antibiotic is less effective.

This kind of condition may even happen when the bacteria start to change their response to the function of the medicines. Such a happening might cause higher medical expenses, extended hospitalizations, and increased mortality.

TYPES

Certain bacteria have been identified to be resistant to specific antibiotics. They are as follows:

Bacteria resistant to the antibiotic Penicillin

  • Penicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
  • Penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae
  • Penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Ceftazidime-avibactam

  • Ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae

Bacteria resistant to the antibiotic Vancomycin

  • Plasmid-mediated vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium
  • Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Daptomycin

  • Daptomycin-resistant methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Bacterium resistant to Amphotericin B

  • Amphotericin B-resistant Candida Auris

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Caspofungin

  • Caspofungin-resistant Candida

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Methicillin

  • Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Fluconazole

  • Fluconazole-resistant Candida

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Extended-spectrum cephalosporins

  • Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin

  • Ciprofloxacin-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Azithromycin

  • Azithromycin-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Bacterium resistant to the antibiotic Imipenem

  • Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae

 

SYMPTOMS

Infections from these bacteria may spread to every part of a person’s body and cause several symptoms, but these symptoms vary depending on the type of bacteria.

DIAGNOSIS

After a series of treatments to cure a certain illness, and if it comes to no avail, it is highly recommended to see a physician observe the illness further and identify the type of bacteria that causes the disease.

Upon diagnosis, the doctor may take a sample of the infected tissue and have it sent to the lab for testing to find out the type of infection. These tests may also determine which antibiotic may be able to fight the infection.

After being prescribed with the standard antibiotics for the identified infection, and the illness does not seem to get better, the healthcare professional may diagnose the patient with an Antibiotic-Resistant Infection. 

TREATMENT

Like the symptoms, the treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections can vary. Some healthcare providers may have a particular antibiotic that might cure the infection, but it might be risky. The healthcare professional is experimenting on introducing a new antibiotic to fight an existing antibiotic-resistant bacterium that may cause certain side effects or worsen the bacteria’s resistance.

If this happens, some cases may leave the physician no other option but to suggest the patient’s hospitalization and intensive care.

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