How Does Antibiotic Misuse Contribute to Rise of Antimicrobial Resistance

Abstract

  The discovery and mass production of antibiotics was a paradigm shift in the field of medicine, turning once- disastrous diseases into a condition that could be treated successfully. These antibiotic drugs not only became the foundation of healthcare in the modern era, but the achievement of complex medical procedures, such as organ transplants, chemotherapy, and major surgery, all of which are based on the capability of prevention and control of bacterial infections, became possible. Nevertheless, this utopian vision of medicine is seriously jeopardized. It is the same strong force of evolution that created life on the earth and is now making these life-saving drugs useless. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become one of the most urgent global public health issues of the 21st century. Although AMR is a multi-factorial, multi-dimensional phenomenon with different causes in the human, animal, and environmental domains, the main cause is the use and excessive use of antibiotics. In this paper, it will be argued that the overuse or incorrect use of antibiotics function as a potent selective pressure causing the evolution and spread of resistant bacteria, the very basis of modern medicine, and thus requiring immediate, global action.