A study published in The Lancet has warned that drug resistant superbugs or antimicrobial resistance (AMR) might lead to the deaths of 40 million individuals, within the next 25 years.
The scientists leading the study have cautioned that steps must be taken to prevent this bleak outcome.
According to the research published in The Lancet marks the first attempt to predict the consequences of superbugs, a growing concern for global health.
Forecasts suggest…
The research found that between 1990 and 2021, over one million individuals died each year due to superbugs despite medical advancements that lowered mortality rates for children under five by over 50 per cent in the past three decades.
Even though advancements helped prevent and control infections, superbugs continue to pose a challenge by becoming increasingly resistant, becoming harder to treat compared to the past.
In the past thirty years, the number of deaths among individuals above the age of 70 has risen by more than 80 per cent, largely due to the increasing susceptibility of the elderly population to infections.
Notably, the number of deaths, due to MRSA infections — a type of staph infection — has increased two fold to 130,000, in 2021 compared to three decades ago.
An emerging danger
Researchers have estimated that the number of people who may die directly from AMRs or superbugs could rise by 67 per cent to reach nearly two million per year by 2050.
Additionally, it is projected that AMRs will contribute to 8.2 million deaths each year—an increase of 75 per cent compared to the present statistics.
This implies that AM resistant bacteria could result in 39 million fatalities and play a role in a total of 169 million deaths within the 25 years.
AFP reports that although the future looks bleak, there is a glimmer of hope.
The study proposes that by improving initiatives to enhance the management of infections and ensure accessibility to efficient antimicrobial medications, we could potentially save up to 92 million lives by 2050.
“These findings highlight that AMR has been a significant global health threat for decades and that this threat is growing,” said Mohsen Naghavi, study co-author at the Institute for Health Metrics.
