Antibiotic Drug Resistance Regains Attention

Last week US Federal regulators announced that farmers and ranchers must restrict their use of certain critical antibiotics in cattle, pigs, chickens, and turkeys because of the growing threat for people with bacterial infections that are resistant to treatment.

from CBS News...
FDA officials have long believed antibiotics given to animals before slaughter are linked to growing antibiotic resistance in humans. But they have previously struggled with the issue because the powerful livestock industry says the drugs are needed to keep animals healthy. Now, consumers are more aware of the issue and are also clamoring for antibiotic-free meat.

The agency's order will limit cephalosporins, which are given to some cattle, swine, chickens and turkeys before slaughter. The drugs are used to treat pneumonia, skin infections and meningitis, among other diseases, in humans.

Cephalosporins, which are injected directly into eggs or animals, are not as widely used as many other antibiotics that are mixed with animal feed in massive quantities. But they are significant because they are used in life-threatening situations for humans - and lives could be lost if resistance is built up over time.

"This is an incredibly critical class of antibiotics for humans," said David Wallinga, a physician at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in Minnesota and a member of the Keep Antibiotics Working coalition. "In the medical world you'd call it a `big gun' or a `drug of last resort.' It's effective against a pretty broad spectrum of bacteria."   more

from the New York Times...
Federal drug regulators announced on Wednesday that farmers and ranchers must restrict their use of a critical class of antibiotics in cattle, pigs, chickens and turkeys because such practices may have contributed to the growing threat in people of bacterial infections that are resistant to treatment.


The medicines are known as cephalosporins and include brands like Cefzil and Keflex. They are among the most common antibiotics prescribed to treat pneumonia, strep throat, and skin and urinary tract infections. Surgeons also often use them before surgery, and they are particularly popular among pediatricians.

The drugs’ use in agriculture has, according to many microbiologists, led to the development of bacteria that are resistant to their effects, a development that many doctors say has cost thousands of lives.

Antibiotics were the wonder drugs of the 20th century, and their initial uses in both humans and animals were indiscriminate. Farmers became so enamored of the miraculous effects of penicillin and tetracycline on the robustness of cattle, chickens and pigs that the drugs were added in bulk to feed and water, with no need for prescriptions or any sign of sickness in the animals. more

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