World Health Organization warns of "killer bacteria" resistant to antibiotics

The World Health Organization warned on Monday of the rapid spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which reduces the effectiveness of available treatments and increases the likelihood that minor wounds and common infections could become life-threatening.

Shocking numbers

A report from the organization for 2023 showed that one in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections was resistant to antibiotics. Ivan Houtin, director of the Department of Universal Health Coverage and Communicable Diseases, stated that these results are "extremely concerning," noting that the lack of treatment options puts patients' lives at risk.

Causes of resistance

Bacterial resistance has gradually developed against the drugs designed to treat it, and several factors have accelerated this phenomenon:

Intensive use of antibiotics in treating humans and animals

Consumption of food containing antibiotics

Poor regulatory systems in some countries


The World Health Organization confirms that antibiotic resistance has become one of the leading causes of deaths from infectious diseases worldwide.

The scale of global risk

According to recent data, resistant germs contribute to approximately 5 million deaths annually, with an estimated half a million of those deaths directly caused by these germs. The rate of bacterial resistance to the antibiotics covered in the report increased by more than **40 between 2018 and 2021.