The number of drug-resistant infections is rapidly rising in Ukraine, according to reports – with the UK’s government agency for health security on alert over a risk of case numbers increasing.
The antimicrobial resistance (AMR) infections occur when bacteria evolves to learn how to defend itself against common antibiotic and other medicines, making treatment ineffective.
Overuse of antibiotics is the main cause of the so-called “silent pandemic” of AMR infections, with a type of infection called Klebsiella pneumoniae now becoming a major issue for hospitals near Ukraine’s frontline.
Last week, the BBC reported on a sharp rise in cases faced by clinicians in Ukraine. While globally, 1.4m people died from AMR infections in 2023. In the same year, 58,000 people had AMR infections in the UK.
The UK Health Security Agency has called it a global crisis with the agency calling for action to drive down infections around the world.
Here, The Independent asks what is helping drive the increase in Ukraine and what can be done about it?
‘Conflict and infectious diseases go hand in hand’
Dr Andrew Edwards, lecturer in molecular microbiology at Imperial College London, said reports of a rapid increase in AMR in Ukraine were “not at all surprising”.
“Conflict and infectious diseases go hand in hand because service personnel are often injured in ways that enable bacteria to get deep into tissues and establish infection,” he said.
“These infections are particularly troublesome when they involve bones and joints because these often involve plastic or metal prosthetics that bacteria can stick to and form protective structures known as biofilms that can resist antibiotics and the immune system.”
Matthew Upton, professor of medical microbiology at the University of Plymouth, said poorer infection control conditions can also increase the spread of infections that are resistant to treatment.
“Conditions are likely to be less clean/hygienic than is usually expected, which increases rates of infection. Mobilisation of populations during war can increase transmission of infections too,” he said.
Professor Adam Roberts from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine said those factors alone would lead to a rise in both…
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