Industry Facts

1. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top global public health and development threats, responsible for an estimated 1.27 million global deaths in 2019, as well as contributing to 4.95 million deaths.1
   
2. The misuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals and plants has led to a rise in AMR, causing the development of drug-resistant pathogens.1 This puts many of the advantages of modern medicine at risk, making infections harder to treat and other procedures and treatments higher risk.1
   
3. Factors leading to AMR include: inappropriate use of antimicrobial drugs; poor infection prevention and control practices; a lack of new antimicrobial drugs being developed, and insufficient global surveillance of infection rates.2
   
4. The UK government has developed an AMR five-year National Action Plan (NAP).2 The plan aims to control AMR by 2040 by optimising the use of antimicrobials, reducing the need for and unintentional use of antibiotics and supporting the development of new antimictobials.2
   
5. It is estimated that the cost of treating antimicrobial-resistant infections in the US is over $4.6bn annually.3
   

References

1. Visit: who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antimicrobial-resistance
2. Visit: england.nhs.uk/ourwork/prevention/antimicrobial-resistance-amr/
3. Visit: cdc.gov/drugresistance/national-estimates.html#:~:text=Antimicrobial%20resistance%20is%20an%20urgent%20global%20public%20health,than%202.8%20million%20antimicrobial-resistant%20infections%20occur%20each%20year.