‘Superbugs’ Becoming Next Global Health Threat- Latest Report
Nikki Attkisson | Last Updated : September 28, 2022Experts have suggested the rising threat of superbugs as they are emerging with strong antimicrobial resistance or the capability to resist the effects of medicinal formulas.
The latest remark on superbugs has come after a woman named Helen Osment, a fundraiser from Hertfordshire, has shared her experience on Antibiotic Research UK, requesting a raise of awareness on antimicrobial resistance.
Awareness On This Matter
Osment had many encounters with superbug invasion, which began with a mere urinary tract infection (UTI) with symptoms of a burning sensation, and blood in the urine. Even though she was prescribed an antibiotic (nitrofurantoin) and correctly followed the course, the symptoms got worse. The pain was raised, making her feverish, and miserable.
Osment stated that this condition can mentally affect someone since it made her quire down and low. Later, she has prescribed a dose of trimethoprim, yet another antibiotic, but the symptoms remained unchanged. This time, while she was in need of something stronger, her options were limited since she was allergic to certain drugs. However, after being prescribed ciprofloxacin she started to develop heart palpitations and pain in her knee as a side effect. Eventually, after visiting a walk-in center, she was told to stop every medication she was following and start a long course of nitrofurantoin instead.
It took weeks for her to finally recover from the infection, which was actually a minor one, but she had to follow strong doses of drugs to finally get rid of it.
More From Powdersville Post:
Certain Foods To Pet Dogs May Cause Spreading Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs!!
Superbug Fungal Virus Spread Creates New Tension
Osment also describes yet another instance where she has been victimized by antimicrobial resistance. It was after six weeks of childbirth she got mastitis, an infection on the breast tissues when she was lactating and breastfeeding her baby. She tried to manage this condition on her own since she wasn’t ready to take any antibiotic drug. But, the symptoms got worse and she had to follow a course of erythromycin. This led her to feel feverish and in extreme pain ending up in A&E., resulting in the development of sepsis, a life-threatening condition, which was diagnosed earlier and cured with accurate care after getting hospitalized along with a different prescription of an antibiotic.
Sharing her story, and pleading for awareness of antimicrobial resistance, Osment added that it can happen to anybody and even a simple infection can escalate rapidly.
According to experts, antimicrobial resistance is a conflict since it implies the existing bugs getting resistant to the available treatments including antibiotics. This results in limited treatment options for diseases and severe infections. Specifically, bacteria are getting more resistant to antibiotics, but the term antimicrobial resistance is a cloud term that is associated with all types of microbes including fungi, viruses, and other parasites.
Generally, if anyone is down with an infection, he can seek medical help and follow some medications to cure it, however, when the infection is caused by any kind of superbug, it may not be easier to completely treat the condition with limited drugs to tackle antimicrobial resistance. Even after trying a chain of medications, there may not be any difference since the superbugs can be resistant to all those, but instead, patients can develop worse and life-threatening symptoms.
Jessica Boname, former head of antimicrobial resistance at the UK’s Medical Research Council has stated that the most recent invasion of Covid-19 is a glimpse of the future world invaded by superbugs, as it showed what the world would look like with resistance to all known antibiotics.
Experts have indicated the threat of antimicrobial resistance is left behind, it would be difficult to manage even the common infections which require a simple prescription. Meanwhile, the resistant pathogens also can cause the requirement of long and costly treatments, or else no available treatment to resist the infection at all.
References:
National Library Of Medicine (n.d) WHO warns of threat of “superbugs”(Available On):https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1127417/
Mayo Clinic (1998-2022) What are superbugs, and how can I protect myself from infection? (Available On):https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/infectious-diseases/expert-answers/superbugs/faq-20129283
With over 15 years as a practicing journalist, Nikki Attkisson found herself at Powdersville Post now after working at several other publications. She is an award-winning journalist with an entrepreneurial spirit and worked as a journalist covering technology, innovation, environmental issues, politics, health etc. Nikki Attkisson has also worked on product development, content strategy, and editorial management for numerous media companies. She began her career at local news stations and worked as a reporter in national newspapers.