Antibiotic resistance in Hong Kong
"In Hong Kong, antibiotic resistance is so bad that even if penicillin works for you, you will have use take higher doses or you have to use other antibiotics," said Raymond Mak, a pharmacist at the Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong. "Streptococcus pneumoniae is not only resistant to penicillin, its resistance to quinolones is becoming worse," he told Reuters in this very interesting report.
Quinolones are a new class of important antibiotics.
The spread of a pig-borne disease in southwest China and the high death toll have thrown the spotlight on the widespread and indiscriminate use of antibiotics in Asia, according to the report. Streptococcus suis, which has rarely spread to humans in the past and should have been relatively easy to control if treated early with antibiotics, has infected 214 people in Sichuan province, China, in recent weeks, killing 39 -- a mortality rate of nearly 20 percent. This pig disease comes amid reports of a bird flu virus hitting parts of China, Russia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. More than 50 people across Asia, most in Vietnam, have died. It led to the killing of some 140 million birds.
We have found that in Japan, bacterias are also becoming resistant to quinolones, which could have very serious consequneces if you get sick. In the United States (pdf), fluoroquinolones have recently been banned for poultry. This is a really good development that other countries, including Japan, quickly should follow.
Quinolones are a new class of important antibiotics.
The spread of a pig-borne disease in southwest China and the high death toll have thrown the spotlight on the widespread and indiscriminate use of antibiotics in Asia, according to the report. Streptococcus suis, which has rarely spread to humans in the past and should have been relatively easy to control if treated early with antibiotics, has infected 214 people in Sichuan province, China, in recent weeks, killing 39 -- a mortality rate of nearly 20 percent. This pig disease comes amid reports of a bird flu virus hitting parts of China, Russia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. More than 50 people across Asia, most in Vietnam, have died. It led to the killing of some 140 million birds.
We have found that in Japan, bacterias are also becoming resistant to quinolones, which could have very serious consequneces if you get sick. In the United States (pdf), fluoroquinolones have recently been banned for poultry. This is a really good development that other countries, including Japan, quickly should follow.
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