The World Health Organization has expressed deep concern over the alarming increase in drug-resistant bacterial infections globally, warning that the trend threatens to undermine decades of medical progress and could make common illnesses deadly once again.
In a new report released on Monday, the United Nations health agency revealed that one in six bacterial infections confirmed in laboratories worldwide in 2023 showed resistance to antibiotics, limiting the effectiveness of treatments for life-threatening diseases.
Dr. Yvan J-F. Hutin, Head of WHO’s Antimicrobial Resistance, Department, described the situation as a major public health threat.
“These findings are deeply concerning. As antibiotic resistance continues to rise, we’re running out of treatment options and putting millions of lives at risk,” Hutin said during a briefing.
According to the report, antimicrobial-resistant superbugs directly cause over one million deaths annually and contribute to nearly five million more each year.
WHO’s analysis covered 22 antibiotics used for treating infections in the urinary tract, gastrointestinal system, bloodstream, and sexually transmitted infections like gonorrhoea.
Between 2018 and 2023, antibiotic resistance increased in over 40 per cent of the monitored drugs, with an average annual growth of between 5 and 15 per cent.
For urinary tract infections alone, global resistance to commonly used antibiotics has risen above 30 per cent.
The most affected bacteria include E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, which are known to cause severe bloodstream infections that can lead to sepsis and death.
“Antimicrobial resistance is outpacing advances in modern medicine, threatening the health of families worldwide,” WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned in a statement.
The WHO further reported that more than 40 per cent of E. coli infections and 55 per cent of K. pneumoniae infections are now resistant to third-generation cephalosporins — the first-choice drugs for treating these infections.
Dr. Hutin acknowledged that surveillance improvements have been made globally but expressed concern that nearly half of countries still fail to provide AMR data.
“We are definitely flying blind in a number of countries and regions that lack effective surveillance systems for antimicrobial resistance,” he stated.
The report identified the highest resistance levels in Southeast Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean, where one in three infections is resistant to antibiotics. In Africa, one in five infections now shows resistance.
Dr. Silvia Bertagnolio, Head of WHO’s AMR Surveillance Unit, explained that weaker health systems are more vulnerable.
“It’s not surprising that resistance is higher where diagnostic and treatment capacities are limited. Many of these countries only test the most severe infections, which skews the data,” she noted.
The WHO cautioned that the world is facing a “future threat” as antibiotic use continues to grow while the pipeline for developing new drugs remains alarmingly thin.
“The combination of increasing antibiotic use, rising resistance, and a shrinking development pipeline is extremely dangerous,” Hutin warned.
The organization urged governments to strengthen surveillance systems, regulate antibiotic use, and invest in research to combat the escalating global threat of antimicrobial resistance.
