Antibiotic Consumption Trends Highlight Urgent Need for Global Action

A study reveals a 16% rise in global antibiotic use from 2016 to 2023, driven mainly by middle-income countries. The COVID-19 pandemic initially reduced consumption, but rates have since rebounded. The study underscores the need for strategic use of antibiotics to combat resistance and improve health infrastructure.

Global antibiotic consumption has surged by over 16% between 2016 and 2023, with the steepest increases observed in middle-income nations such as India, a recent study highlights. The analysis, spanning 67 countries, indicates a growing reliance on antibiotics, raising concerns over antibiotic resistance.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, middle-income countries saw a 10% rise in antibiotic use from 2016 to 2019, while high-income countries experienced a 6% decline, according to researchers including those from Harvard's School of Public Health. However, the pandemic temporarily curtailed antibiotic consumption across all income brackets, with high-income nations witnessing an 18% drop in 2020.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, calls for judicious antibiotic use and infrastructure investment to reduce resistance risk. By 2030, antibiotic use could skyrocket by 52.3% to more than 75 billion doses daily, a projection requiring immediate global action.

(With inputs from agencies.)