Sobre a resistência aos antibióticos

https://www.theguardian.com/global/2019/mar/24/the-drugs-dont-work-what-happens-after-antibiotics

Citando:
"Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) – the process of bacteria (and yeasts and viruses) evolving defence mechanisms against the drugs we use to treat them – is progressing so quickly that the UN has called it a “global health emergency”. At least 2 million Americans contract drug-resistant infections every year. So-called “superbugs” spread rapidly, in part because some bacteria are able to borrow resistance genes from neighbouring species via a process called horizontal gene transfer. In 2013, researchers in China discovered E coli containing mcr-1, a gene resistant to colistin, a last-line antibiotic that, until recently, was considered too toxic for human use. Colistin-resistant infections have now been detected in at least 30 countries."
(...)
"Making a dent in antibiotic resistance will require such international efforts. Some 90% of forecast deaths from AMR will take place in Africa and Asia – the countries where antibiotic overuse, and resistant infections, are highest. When the AMR review was published in 2016, O’Neill was encouraged by the international response. But since then, Brexit and the Trump administration have knocked AMR off the news agenda. And despite enthusiastic rhetoric, pharmaceutical companies continue to tread water.

“I occasionally think that pharmaceutical company CEOs say to themselves, ‘We’ll just wait until it becomes a real crisis,’” says O’Neill."

O estado da fast food...

... nos EUA:
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2018/10/17/chain-reaction-burgers-gone-bad/1672029002

Citando:
"The review is in. And here's the pharmaceutical facts on your favorite fast food burgers.

According to a recent collaborative report that graded the Top 25 fast-food burger chains on their antibiotic policies, only two — Shake Shack and BurgerFi — received an "A" grade. Wendy's received a "D-," and the remaining 22 chains received an "F.""

Carne de frango e antibióticos (nos EUA)

https://sol.sapo.pt/artigo/620034/carne-de-frango-esta-a-ser-afetada-por-uma-epidemia-ha-varias-decadas-

Citando:
"Quem lançou o alerta foi a jornalista norte-americana Maryn McKenna no seu livro intitulado “Plucked! The Truth About Chicken”, que foi publicado há cerca de um ano, sendo que o livro resulta de uma investigação sobre a utilização de antibióticos na indústria agro-alimentar. O estudo diz respeito ao frango que é produzido nos Estados Unidos e no Reino Unido, mas ainda assim o alerta serve para todo o mundo."(...)"O estudo revela que a utilização de antibióticos em demasia na produção de carnes que se destinam ao consumo humano retira as propriedades para combater, de forma eficaz, as bactérias que se tornam “resistentes”."

Guerra dos antibióticos?

Desde 1980 que não se descobrem novos antibióticos:
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-21702647

E porque é que isso é importante? Porque desenvolvem resistência e porque são muito mais usados do que se pensa.
Citando:
"Antibiotics are more widely used than you might think and a world without antibiotics would be far more dangerous.

They made deadly infections such as tuberculosis treatable, but their role in healthcare is far wider than that.

Surgery that involves cutting open the body poses massive risks of infection. Courses of antibiotics before and after surgery have enabled doctors to perform operations that would have been deadly before.

Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy can damage the immune system. A course of antibiotics is prescribed to provide a much-needed boost alongside your body's own defences.

Anyone with an organ transplant faces a lifetime of drugs to suppress the immune system, otherwise it attacks the transplant, so antibiotics are used to protect the body."

Antibióticos em vez de remoção do apêndice (na apendicite aguda)?

Medicação poderá ser substituta da operação mais comum em crianças (no RU):
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/feb/17/antibiotics-not-surgery-could-treat-appendicitis-in-children-study-suggests

Citando:
"Antibiotics could be an effective alternative to surgery for treating children with appendicitis, research suggests.

According to the NHS, appendicitis affects an estimated one in 13 people at some point in their life, with appendix removal the most common reason for emergency surgery in children. 

But researchers say using antibiotics alone might offer a less invasive alternative – an approach that has already had some success in adult patients."

O panorama terrível do frango no RU (E.Coli multi resistente)

http://m.huffpost.com/uk/entry/uk_57cd5ba6e4b01e35922bb63f


Citando:
"One in four supermarket chicken samples contain antibiotic-resistant E coli, according to research from the University of Cambridge.
A study discovered the bacteria in packs of meat sold at major supermarkets including Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose, the Co-op and Aldi.
Mark Holmes, who conducted the research, hailed the findings as “worrying”."
(...)
"He said that by the time they receive the right antibiotic, the bug could be “out of control”, which could potentially be fatal.
He raised concerns that not enough is being done to monitor antibiotic resistance in farm animals and retail meat.
The new study, which also analysed pork samples, found that half (51%) of all chicken and pork samples were resistant to the antibiotic trimethoprim. This is often used to treat lower urinary-tract infections."


i.e. quando se tenta uma segunda abordagem a bactéria já pode estar fora de controlo. Morreu ainda era semana uma criança por E. Coli em queijo.

Sobre o uso indiscriminado de antibióticos na criação de animais

Parecido com o problema nos humanos:
http://www.pig-world.co.uk/news/animal-health/farm-antibiotics-investors-are-right-to-be-worried.html
"The need to tackle human prescribing is still widely considered to be the highest priority in the drive to safeguard our antibiotics, but global attention is increasingly turning to the overuse of antibiotics in farming.
The discovery in late 2015 of the mcr-1 gene, which confers resistance to the “last-resort” antibiotic colistin, catapulted veterinary antibiotic use into the headlines worldwide. First found in China, the gene was subsequently discovered in at least 19 countries worldwide.

These findings, strongly linked to farm use of colistin, triggered widespread concern. Subsequently, 50 medics and scientists across Europe and the US called on MEPs to support a ban on routine preventative mass-medication of groups of healthy animals."

Multirresistência: O que é preciso saber

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/14/antibiotic-resistance-what-you-need-to-know

NEWS: Novo antibiótico descoberto (primeiro desde 1987)

Isto é um verdadeiro evento digno de registo apesar dos pesares (ver o parágrafo final):

- Novo antibiótico descoberto (relevante para o aparecimento de uma série de bactérias multi-resistentes): Teixobactin
- Desde a descoberta da penicilina (A. Flemming, 1928) cerca de 100 compostos antibióticos foram descobertos
-Desde 1987 que não eram descobertos novos antibióticos (e a forma de se chegar a este é inovadora)
- Poderá vir a estar disponível daqui a... 5 anos

Informação adicional
Notícia: aqui
Artigo: Nature