Anti-microbial Resistance 

• Antimicrobial resistance, also known as drug resistance, is the resistance acquired by microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites against antimicrobial drugs that are used to treat infections, making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death.
• When the microorganisms become resistant to most antimicrobials they are often referred to as “superbugs”. 
• According to WHO, AMR is responsible for 1.27 million deaths in a year. 
• WHO has declared that AMR is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity.

Causes of AMR 

• Genetic mutations endow microbes with genes that enable them to resist anti-microbial agents. 
• Access to antibiotics without prescription, improper administration and overconsumption can cause AMR in humans. 
• Antibiotics are commonly used for growth promotion in poultry. Here, drug-resistant bacteria found in meat have exposure to contaminated water and in this way, diseases that affect animals can pass to humans. 
• Untreated disposal of sewage of waterbodies can lead to contamination of rivers with antimicrobial residues. 

Impact of AMR  

• AMR increases the health burden of nations leading to higher medical costs, prolonged hospital stays, and increased mortality. 
• Organ transplantations, chemotherapy, diabetes management and surgeries become more dangerous without effective antibiotics for treatment of infections. 
• The economic impact of increasing AMR includes loss of a productive workforce, leading to lowered national outputs. 
• It also endangers the achievement of Sustainable development goals (SDGs). 

Global Efforts to combat AMR 

• World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (18 to 24 November) held annually is a global campaign that aims to increase awareness of antimicrobial resistance worldwide and to encourage best practices among the public, health workers and policy makers to avoid the further emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections. 
• The Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS) under the WHO supports a standardized approach to collection, analysis and sharing of data related to antimicrobial resistance at a global level to promote informed decision-making. 
• The AWaRe tool was developed by the WHO to guide policy-makers and health workers to use antibiotics safely and more effectively. The AWaRe tool classifies antibiotics into: 
  • Access— antibiotics used to treat the most common and serious infection, 
  • Watch— antibiotics available at all times in the healthcare system, 
  • Reserve— antibiotics to be used, sparingly and used only as a last resort. 

National Initiatives 

NAP-AMR

• The Government of India adopted the National Action Plan on AMR (NAP-AMR) in 2017, with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) as the nodal ministry. The overarching goal of NAP-AMR is to effectively combat antimicrobial resistance in India, and contribute towards the global efforts to tackle this public health threat.

Red Line Campaign

• The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has made it mandatory to display a 5mm-thick red vertical band (line) on packaging of prescription-only drugs (which compulsorily require Doctors’ Prescription). 
• It aims at sensitising people and making them cautious while buying these Antibiotic medicines that are widely sold without prescriptions.

Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance and Research Network (AMRSN) 

• Initiated by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in 2013, AMRSN aims to generate evidence and capture trends and patterns of drug resistant infections in the country. 

Why in News?

• India participated in the Third Global High-Level Conference on Anti-Microbial Resistance held in Muscat, Oman. 
• The event witnessed the launch of Multi-Stakeholder Partnership Platform on AMR.

reference:

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1878565