Cis one of the biggest health threats of the 21st centurye century. Without urgent action, antibiotic-resistant infections could kill nearly 40 million people in 2050, the leading scientific journal recently warned. The Lancet. In an annual report published this Monday, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) calculated that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) causes more than 35,000 deaths in Europe each year.
The European Union must take urgent action or risk missing its 2030 targets in the fight against antimicrobial resistance, urges the Center headquartered in Stockholm. “Between 2019 and 2023, the consumption of antibiotics in the European Union increased by 1%, moving away from the 20% reduction target recommended” by the EU, writes the ECDC.
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The discovery of antibiotics marked a major advance in medicine, making once-fatal infections like pneumonia and sepsis treatable. But this revolution is now under threat: growing bacterial resistance could reverse progress, placing AMR at the forefront of public health challenges for decades to come. Simple infections could become untreatable and routine operations could become complicated due to lack of infection prevention.
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At the Plotkin European Institute of Vaccinology (EPIV-ULB), we also emphasize the crucial importance of vaccination to curb the increase in pathogens resistant to treatments. Vaccines make it possible to limit infections such as pneumonia or pneumococcal meningitis and strengthen collective immunity.
In Belgium, antimicrobial resistance is rigorously monitored by Sciensano, the scientific institute of public health. In 2019, approximately one in eleven infections was resistant, particularly affecting the most vulnerable populations such as the elderly and very young children. Around 7% of hospitalized patients in Belgium contract a healthcare-related infection, a significant proportion of which is caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
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According to an analysis carried out among 2.3 million members of Free Mutualities, the objectives set by the One Health AMR national action plan, the KCE and the WHO have largely not been achieved. Compared to the European average, Belgium remains a large consumer of antibiotics, note the Mutualités Libres, which encourage the authorities to continue the various actions included in the One Health national action plan to combat antimicrobial resistance. Antibiotic residues, released into the environment (via wastewater or agriculture), in fact promote the emergence of resistant bacteria in ecosystems.
