Infection rates for “nightmare”, medication resistant, increased almost 70% between 2019 and 2023, according to a new report of scientists from the centers for the control and prevention of diseases (CDC) of the United States.
These bacteria, difficult to treat due to the so -called GEN NDM, were the main responsible for the increase, according to CDC researchers in an article published Monday in Monday and spread this morning by means. Only two antibiotics are effective against these infections, and the medications are expensive and must be administered intravenously, the researchers said.
Bacteria with this gene were considered exotic, associated with a small number of patients who received medical care abroad. Although the figures are still small, the case rate in the US has been quintupled in recent years, according to the researchers.
“The increase in NDM in the United States is a serious and very worrying danger,” said David Weiss, an infectious disease researcher at the Emory University, in an email to the aforementioned American agency. It is likely that many people are unrecognized carriers of drug -resistant bacteria, which could lead to community propagation, CDC scientists said.
This could happen in the medical offices throughout the country, since infections that for a long time were considered routine (such as those of the urinary tract) could become more difficult to treat, said Dr. Maroya Walters, one of the authors of the report.
Where does the resistance come from
The antimicrobial occurs when germs as bacteria and fungi acquire the ability to combat medications designed to eliminate them. The improper use of antibiotics was one of the main causes of this increase: incomplete or unnecessary recipes that did not eliminate germs made them stronger.
In recent years, CDCs have drawn attention to “nightmare bacteria” resistant to a wide range of antibiotics. This includes carbapenemic, a class of antibiotics considered as the last resort for the treatment of serious infections.
The researchers extracted data from 29 states that perform the necessary tests and reports on carbapenemic resistant bacteria. 4341 cases of bacterial infections resistant to carbapenemic in those states in 2023 were recorded, of which 1831 corresponded to the NDM variety. The researchers did not specify how many infected people died.
The rate of infections resistant to carbapenemic increased from just under 2 per 100,000 people in 2019 to more than 3 per 100,000 in 2023, which represents an increase of 69 %. However, the NDM case rate increased from approximately 0.25 to approximately 1.35, representing an increase of 460 %, according to the authors.
A researcher not involved in the study said that the increase is probably related to the. “We know that there was a great increase in the use of antibiotics during the pandemic, so this is probably reflected in greater resistance to medications,” said Dr. Jason Burnham, a researcher at the University of Washington, in an email.
And what is not known
CDC count is just a partial image, science also warns. Many states do not perform tests or report cases completely. Even in the states that do, cases tend to be presented among hospitalized patients sick enough to require special tests. Many hospitals cannot perform the necessary tests to detect certain forms of genetic resistance.
CDC researchers had no data from some of the most populated states, including California, Florida, New York and Texas, which means that the absolute number of infections in the United States “is definitely underestimated,” said Burnham.
This is not the first study that reports an increase. A CDC report published in June indicated an increase in NDM cases in New York City between 2019 and 2024.
He explains, to be attentive, that resistant enterobacteria infections do not differ much from common bacterial diseases, which makes detection difficult. Typical alert signs include:
- Urinary tract infections: ardor sensation, frequent need to urinate or murky urine.
- Infections of the blood torrent: high fever, tachycardia or very low blood pressure.
- Pneumonia (lung infection): cough, breathing difficulty or chest pain.
Not only in the US
The Qatari medium indicates that we are not only facing a US problem, but that these bacteria can also be found in other parts of the world, although prevalence varies according to the region.
Europa: Research shows that countries in southern Europe, such as Greece, Italy and Turkey, report cases of “nightmare bacteria” more frequently than northern countries, where infection control measures and optimization programs for the use of antibiotics tend to be more solid.
Latin America: Carbapeenemic resistant infections are an emerging concern, especially in Brazil and Argentina, where several outbreaks have been recorded in 2021 and 2022.
Asia Meridional: NDM producing bacteria are relatively extended compared to other regions of the world, particularly in India and Pakistan. Among the factors that contribute to this problem are the excessive use of antibiotics, the low regulation of generic antibiotics and the saturation of hospitals, which facilitates the propagation of infection.
Africa: While exhaustive data are limited, studies have revealed the presence of resistant bacteria in both hospitals and communities. Limited diagnostic capacity often leads to a sub -registration, while risk factors such as unregulated use of antibiotics and poor sanitary infrastructure increase the threat of propagation of infections.
