CDC: Deaths From Antibiotic-Resistant Organisms Underestimated

In 2013, antibiotic-resistant organisms were responsible for nearly twice as many fatalities in the United States as previously reported, according to a new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States, 2019, serves as an update to the CDC’s report from 2013, which “used the best data available at the time, but data limitations led to an underestimate of the true burden of antibiotic resistance.”

For the 2019 report, they made use of new data sources which were also used to recalculate burden estimates from the previous report. The new estimates are nearly 2 times higher than the original 2013 estimates, with nearly 44,000 deaths occurring each year.

However, they noted that deaths from antibiotic resistant infections have decreased by 18% since the 2013 report, suggesting that prevention efforts have been successful.

The 2019 report lists 18 bacteria and fungi grouped into 3 categories: urgent, serious, and concerning. It also includes a Watch List section on organisms that, while currently responsible for few infections in the US, have the potential to become more urgent in years to come.

The 2019 report categorizes carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter, Candida auris, Clostridioides difficile, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, and drug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae as urgent threats.

“CDC’s 2013 report highlighted significant gaps in knowledge related to antibiotic resistance. As a result of investments made through CARB, the United States has made great strides in addressing these gaps. As detection and surveillance capabilities increase, awareness of the scope and complexity of antibiotic resistance has also grown. More action is needed across industries, countries, and settings to fully protect people from resistance threats,” they wrote.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antibiotic resistance threats in the United States, 2019. https://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/pdf/threats-report/2019-ar-threats-report-508.pdf. Published November 6, 2019. Accessed November 14, 2019.