Disease

Middle respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – update

The first case of the deadly virus that surfaced in Saudi Arabia in 2012 has been reported in the United States, officials at the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention announced today (May 2).

Call for action on antibiotic resistance

A UN report released Thursday draws on data from 114 countries and focuses on antibiotic resistance to bacteria that cause common but serious diseases such as sepsis, diarrhoea, pneumonia, urinary tract infections and gonorrhoea “Without urgent, co-ordinated action, the world is headed for a post-antibiotic era in which common infections can once again kill.”

About half of all antibiotic prescriptions are estimated to be unnecessary, which is driving the development of drug-resistant “super-bugs”.

In India, Thailand and Vietnam people can buy antibiotics without a prescription.

Resistance to carbapenem, the last resort for treating Klebsiella pneumonia, has been recorded throughout the world. Klebsiella pneumonia is a major cause of hospital-acquired infections such as pneumonia, sepsis, infections in newborns and intensive-care unit patients.

“Unless we take significant actions to improve efforts to prevent infections and also change how we produce, prescribe and use antibiotics, the world will lose more and more of these global public health goods and the implications will be devastating.”

This report is kick-starting a global effort led by WHO to address drug resistance. This will involve improved collaboration to track drug resistance, measure its health and economic impacts, and design solutions.

Ordinary people can help by using antibiotics only when prescribed by a doctor, completing the full prescription, even if they feel better, and never sharing antibiotics with others.