According to the new Global Research on Antimicrobial Resistance (GRAM) Project, in 2019, between 3 and 10.4 lakh people in India died due to bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
- AMR is a condition in which pathogenic bacteria no longer respond to antibiotics.
- GRAM is the first analysis of the global burden of AMR. The project is a partnership between the University of Oxford and the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington.
- 29.9 lakh people died in the country either directly from or due to conditions triggered by sepsis.
- Sepsis is blood poisoning in which the body has an extreme reaction to infection, and whose management has become difficult due to AMR, a widely recognised global public health emergency.
- As many as 3,25,091 deaths in children under five in the country in 2019 occurred due to bacterial infections.
- The bacteria found to be deadliest to Indian children was Streptococcus pneumoniae, which was associated with 58,212 deaths in 2019.
- The report also mentioned that in India, bacterial AMR deaths are associated with or attributable to six major superbugs—Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter baumannii, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Streptococcus pneumoniae.
About Sepsis
- Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that happens when the body’s immune system has an extreme response to an infection, causing organ dysfunction.
- The body’s reaction causes damage to its own tissues and organs and it can lead to shock, multiple organ failure and sometimes death, especially if not recognized early and treated promptly.
- Sepsis can affect anyone, but people who are older, very young, pregnant or have other health problems are at higher risk.
- Common signs of sepsis include fever, fast heart rate, rapid breathing, confusion and body pain.
- It can lead to septic shock, multiple organ failure and death.
- Sepsis is usually caused by bacterial infections but may be the result of other infections such as viruses, parasites or fungi.
- Its treatment requires medical care, including the use of antimicrobials, intravenous fluids and other measures.
