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Antibiotic emergency ‘could claim 40 million lives in next 25 years’ (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 2 years ago by to c/health@lemmy.world
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Summary

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) could claim 40 million lives by 2050, with death rates expected to double, warns Dame Sally Davies, former chief medical officer for England.

The overuse of antibiotics in livestock and misuse in healthcare are accelerating the evolution of superbugs, making routine medical procedures riskier.

Elderly populations are especially vulnerable, with AMR-related deaths among over-70s rising 80% since 1990.

Efforts to limit antibiotic use and develop new treatments are hampered by poor incentives for pharmaceutical companies.

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[+] 28 points 2 years ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 child)
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    • [–] 16 points 2 years ago (4 children)

    A solution to this was invented in the soviet union, phage therapy. The FDA doesn't like it because it doesn't fit their regulatory framework, and it's not profitable, so it's not used.

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  • [–] 14 points 2 years ago

    To be fair, with antibiotics that work there was no reason to even consider phages. Phages required ongoing work to get new phages targeting the new bacteria whereas early antibiotics were basically 1 step away from magic they worked so well.

    Now, them not being used/researched more is fuckin' dumb though. We know that antibiotics aren't magic and are quickly becoming ineffective, but, [see your original comment]

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