TUESDAY, Sept. 17, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Millions more people will die annually from antibiotic-resistant infections over the next 25 years unless steps are taken to counter this growing health threat, a new study warns. The number of deaths linked to antibiotic-resistant bacteria is projected to grow to 8.
2 million per year by 2050, up 75% from current estimates of 4.7 million a year, researchers reported Sept. 16 in The Lancet journal.
“By 2050, resistant infections could be involved in some 8 million deaths each year, either as the direct cause of death or as a contributing factor,” said researcher Dr. Stein Emil Vollset of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. “To prevent this from becoming a deadly reality, we urgently need new strategies to decrease the risk of severe infections through vaccines, new drugs, improved healthcare, better access to existing antibiotics and guidance on how to use them most effectively,” Vollset added in a journal news release.
Overall, more than 39 million people could die directly from antibiotic-resistant infections over the next 25 years, researchers concluded. Another 169 million deaths would be associated with these superbugs. “These findings highlight that antimicrobial resistance has been a significant global health threat for decades and that this threat is growing,” said researcher Dr.
Mohsen Naghavi , team leader of antimicrobial resistance research at the Institute of Health Metrics with the University of Washin.