Findings of the WHO 2014 Report on Antibiotics Resistance

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an increasingly serious threat to global public health. AMR develops when a microorganism (bacteria, fungus, virus or parasite) no longer responds to a drug to which it  was originally sensitive. This means that standard treatments no longer work; infections are harder or impossible to control; the risk of the spread of infection to others is increased; illness and hospital stays  are prolonged, with added economic and social costs; and the risk of death is greater—in some cases, twice that of patients who have infections caused by non-resistant bacteria.

The problem is so serious that it threatens the achievements of modern medicine. A post-antibiotic era—in which common infections and minor injuries can kill—is a very real possibility for the 21st century.

Key Findings

• Very high rates of resistance have been observed in all WHO regions in common bacteria (for example, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus) that cause common health-care associated and community-acquired infections (urinary tract infections, wound infections, bloodstream infections and pneumonia).
• Increasing levels of transmitted anti-HIV drug resistance have been detected among patients starting antiretroviral treatment.
• Tuberculosis: Globally, 3.6% of new TB cases and 20.2% of previously treated cases are estimated to have multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), with much higher rates in Eastern Europe and central Asia.
• HIV: Data collected between 2004 and 2010 in low- and middle-income countries showed increasing levels of transmitted anti-HIV drug resistance among those starting antiretroviral treatment (ART). 
• Resistance in systemic candidiasis: Systemic candidiasis is a common fungal infection worldwide and associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality in certain groups of patients. Although it is known that antifungal resistance imposes a substantial burden on health-care systems in industrialized countries, the global burden of antifungal-resistant Candida is unknown. Resistance to fluconazole, a common antifungal drug, varies widely by country and species. Resistance to the newest class of antifungal agents, the echinocandins, is already emerging in some countries.

Full Report: Antimicrobial resistance: global report on surveillance (PDF)

Summary Report: Antimicrobial resistance: global report on surveillance (PDF)

Download the report infographic