A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a rise in antibiotic-resistant infections and deaths during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, a setback the agency says highlights both the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and the need to prepare for future pandemics.The report found that infections and deaths from drug-resistant, hospital-acquired bacteria rose by 15% from 2019 to 2020, with alarming increases in some of the most highly resistant bacterial pathogens.
The report suggests the increases in these infections likely resulted from a combination of factors linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, including surges in antibiotic use, challenges in maintaining infection prevention and control procedures, and longer hospital stays among severely ill COVID-19 patients.And the toll of resistant infections in 2020 may have been even worse.
Because of pandemic impacts, the report notes, data are delayed or unavailable for 9 of 18 resistant pathogens the CDC tracks.The increases come after years of progress against hospital-acquired infections and AMR, the CDC said."This setback can and must be temporary," Michael Craig, MPP, Director of the CDC's Antibiotic Resistance Coordination & Strategy Unit, said in a press release. "The COVID-19 pandemic has unmistakably shown us that antimicrobial resistance will not stop if we let down our guard; there is no time to waste."A 'sobering' reportThe increase in resistant infections was largely driven by hospital-acquired pathogens.
Of the 29,400 people who died in 2020 from antibiotic-resistant infections commonly associated with healthcare, 40% acquired the infection in the hospital.Among the eight specific pathogens that increased