17 Sept 2024 • As per estimates from the Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance 1990–2021 report, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was linked to an estimated 4.71 million deaths in 2021, with 1.14 million deaths directly attributable to AMR.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Over the past three decades, AMR mortality has soared by over 80% among adults aged 70 and older, despite a decline in young children.
• For both deaths associated with and deaths attributable to AMR, meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus increased the most globally.
• Among Gram-negative bacteria, resistance to carbapenems increased more than any other antibiotic class.
• Projections for 2050 are dire: forecasts show that an estimated 1·91 million deaths attributable to AMR and 8·22 million deaths associated with AMR could occur globally in 2050, with the highest mortality rates expected in South Asia and Latin America.
• Increases in deaths attributable to AMR will be largest among those 70 years and older.
• Under the better care scenario, across all age groups, 92·0 million deaths could be cumulatively averted between 2025 and 2050, through better care of severe infections and improved access to antibiotics.

Source: Lancet | Read full story