Millions are dying from drug-resistant infections, global report says.
Share IMAGE SOURCE, GETTY IMAGES Image caption, Antibiotics may no longer work because the bacteria they are intended to kill is becoming resistant More than 1.2 million people died worldwide in 2019 from infections caused by bacteria resistant to antibiotics, according to the largest study of the issue to date. This is more than the annual death toll from malaria or Aids. Poorer countries are worst affected but antimicrobial resistance threatens everyone's health, the report says. Urgent investment in new drugs and using current ones more wisely are recommended to protect against it. The overuse of antibiotics in recent years for trivial infections means they are becoming less effective against serious infections. People are dying from common, previously treatable infections because the bacteria that cause them have become resistant to treatment. UK health officials recently warned antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was a "hidden pandemic" that could emerge in the wake of ...