Part I: Antibiotic Resistance (AMR) - Global and Local Epidemiology

1.1 Global Burden of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

1. A global disease burden study has estimated that in 2021 there were 4.71 million deaths associated with bacterial AMR, including 1.14 million deaths attributable to bacterial AMR, and forecasts show that an estimated 1.91 million deaths attributable to AMR and 8.22 million deaths associated with AMR could occur globally in 2050. [1]

2. The World Bank estimates that AMR could result in US$1 trillion additional healthcare costs by 2050, and US$1 trillion to US$3.4 trillion gross domestic product (GDP) losses per year by 2030. [2]

3. According to the 2022 Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System (GLASS) report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), the median reported rates in 76 countries for third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were 42% and 35% respectively. [3] Besides, Klebsiella pneumoniae also showed elevated resistance levels against critical antibiotics including carbapenems across multiple regions. [3]

4. The AMR situation of AMR worsened during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A systematic review of 30 studies revealed increased rates of MRSA, vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) during this time. [4]