I’m getting ready for next week’s ASM/ESCMID conference on methicillin-resistant staphylococci in animals, for which I’m involved in a plenary session about critically important antibiotics in companion animals. The whole area of antibiotics and animals in complex and controversial (and made worse by political agendas, lack of evidence and confusion about different issues).
Anyway
Antibiotic use in animals, and the impact on humans is a controversial area. At a conference a few years ago, one of the organizers posed the question, "What percentage of resistance in human pathogens is attributable to antibiotic use in animals?" They had people write their answers on cards, and later in the
A call to arms from guest blogger and University of Guelph professor, Dr. John Prescott:
Watching the global emergence and spread of multi-drug resistant bacteria is like seeing a train wreck in slow motion. There’s a sense of both inexorability and powerlessness. In the March 2013 issue of the Equine Veterinary Journal, Mark
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and other antibiotic-resistant bacteria are big problems. They account for millions of illnesses, thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in costs every year internationally. Antibiotic-resistance is a complex issue, but some people try to over-simplify (and under-analyse) the problem.
A recent article on Examiner.com is an example. Entitled "MRSA
Sometimes, I get a little concerned when research papers get picked up by the press. It’s not necessarily because the research is weak, it’s just that results sometimes get overstated or misinterpreted when they work their way outside of scientific forums.
A paper published in the latest edition of the American Journal of Veterinary Research
At a time when there’s much concern about antibiotic use and resistance, and when there’s talk about restricting antibiotic use in animals, it amazes me that some huge, illogical and easy-to-correct loopholes remain in the current system.
The approach to access to antibiotics for animals varies greatly in different countries:
While it shouldn’t come as a surprise considering other studies, a recent study in PLoS One (O’Brien et al 2012) has caused a bit of a stir in the US. This study, headed up by Dr. Tara Smith’s research group in Iowa, looked for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in retail pork. They bought
A two-part study (Maddox et al. 2011) was recently published online in the Equine Veterinary Journal looking at antimicrobial resistant "superbugs" in horses in the UK. The first part of the study had the simple objective of estimating the prevalence of both MRSA nasal colonization and fecal shedding of antimicrobial resistant E. coli in the
Urinary tract disease is a common reason for use (and misuse) of antibiotics. In veterinary medicine, one thing that we lack is clear clinical guidelines (particularly regarding antimicrobial use) to help manage specific types of diseases. In human medicine, there are some excellent guidelines of this kind (e.g. the Infectious Disease Society of America guidelines
The Swedish Veterinary Association has released an English version of their 2009 "Guidelines for the clinical use of antibiotics in the treatment of dogs and cats". It’s a very comprehensive document that goes through various medical conditions and discusses antibiotic use recommendations. As concerns about antibiotic use and misuse increase, more
