More People are Using Antibiotics Around the World

Antibiotic use has spiked throughout the world, according to a recent study. Researchers at Princeton University in New Jersey found that the use of related medications has increased on a global scale by as much as 36 percent.

"People are getting richer and can afford antibiotics," said Thomas Van Boeckel, an epidemiologist of the university and the lead study author, via Medical Xpress. "That is not necessarily all bad news. People need access to antibiotics. But there is appropriate use and misuse."

For the study, researchers examined the use of antibiotics in 71 countries between 2000 and 2010. They found that a spike in antibiotic use is not attributed to increases in population, but potentially, expanding economies. In fact, researchers found that Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa are responsible for a 75 percent increase in this rate.

Certain antibiotics were more commonly used than others, according to the findings. Study results showed that drugs such as ampicillin and amoxicillin were the most commonly used. However, researchers cautioned that overuse could reduce their overall effectiveness.

"If we lose the effectiveness of these drugs, there really isn't much left," Van Boeckel added.

Despite the buildup of antibiotic resistance among many users, researchers were unable to determine whether or not this was due to drug abuse or an increase in viral infections.

"If you look at antibiotic use in the U.S., it's correlated to influenza, and it's not going to do anything for that," added Van Boeckel.
However, some low and middle-income nations might be more likely to use antibiotics, including cephalosporin and fluoroquinolone, with diarrhea or mosquito-borne illnesses, such as dengue fever or chikungunya.

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

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