The most frequent antibiotics provided by paediatricians for bacterial infections, azithromycin and amoxicillin are not working for many children in Hyderabad who have a common cold caused by the bacteria Mycoplasma pneumonia during the current winter season.
As a paediatric community, we witness abuse of Azee (Azithromycin) and Augmentin (Amoxicillin Clavulanate). This time, several children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections did not respond to azithromycin. Dr. Sivaranjini Santosh, a leading paediatrician from Hyderabad, cautions that if this misuse continues, many antibiotics would not function and there will be an increasing number of hospitalizations and fatalities.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), which is a direct result of widespread antibiotic usage, is brought to light by the Mycoplasma pneumonia and azithromycin resistance scenario. Dr. Ranga Reddy Burri, president of the Infection Control Academy of India (ICAI), states that action is urgently needed.
We run the risk of losing more lives to diseases that were previously curable if we do not act right away. According to Dr. Ranga Reddy, a senior public health specialist from Hyderabad, paediatric practice in particular is a frontline battleground where this resistance is becoming apparent, frequently exacerbated by false information and inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions.
The effectiveness of our antibiotic arsenal is already being impacted by AMR, a hidden and largely ignored pandemic. He claimed that although AMR may not be as popular on social media as viral outbreaks, its effects are significantly more terrible.
Dr. Ranga Reddy emphasized the necessity of directing group efforts toward the development of a strong and long-lasting Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (PPR) system that will give priority to tackling the often-overlooked but crucial pandemics like AMR. He went on to say that policy-driven limitations on the sale of over-the-counter antibiotics, physician stewardship initiatives, and public awareness campaigns are some of the tactics to identify AMR.
-NSH Digidesk
