How Is Modern Medicine Being Affected by Drug-Resistant Infections?

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is the ability of microbes (e.g. bacteria, fungi, viruses, parasites) to resist the effects of medications that were once successfully able to kill them or inhibit their growth. This major public health issue could have significant impacts on modern medicine, rendering previously effective treatments no longer useable. Already, we see AMR impacting on our ability to treat certain conditions, but this is projected to grow significantly over the next 20–30 years. The aim of this study is to understand the evidence base regarding the impact of AMR on modern medicine for non-infectious diseases and health conditions. The work consisted of a Rapid Evidence Assessment, which is a standardised and structured approach to searching the literature but has a narrow focus on a topic and is not intended to be a complete systematic review of the evidence-base. This report will be useful for patient advocacy groups, policymakers, health and healthcare research funders and the wider research community.

We looked at academic publications related to impacts of AMR on non-infectious diseases and health conditions published in the last 10 years, identifying a total of 135 articles for inclusion in the review.