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| Source: WHO |
US Surgeon General, William H. Stewart, is famously quoted (mid 1950s) for stating that it was “time to close the book on infectious diseases, and declare the war against pestilence won".
If only he had been correct.
Despite advances in medicine and infectious diseases, the microbes have reared back with a global resurgence of drug resistant infections such as MRSA, MDR-Tuberculosis, Clostridium difficile, ESBL gram negative rods, and carbapenemase resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae.
The hunter (man) once again becomes the hunted.
This global trend is being taken seriously, as witnessed by the focus on antibiotic resistance in WHO's World Health Day (April 7th, 2011). Containment of antibiotic resistance is the goal. This is achievable by the promotion of proper antibiotic use, education, policy, international surveillance and public-private partnerships to ensure the steady development of novel antibiotics.
For a well written perspective on our endless struggle with microbes, I refer you to this article in The Lancet- Infectious Diseases.
