Antibiotics

Antibacterial Resistance and Antibiotic Use in Animals

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

There is currently increased scientific and public interest regarding the administration of therapeutic and subtherapeutic antimicrobials to animals, due primarily to the emergence and dissemination of multiple antimicrobial resistant zoonotic bacterial pathogens9,14. The recent isolation and detection of multi-drug resistant enterococci, Campylobacter and Salmonella typhimurium DT104 from animal sources or their immediate environment has recharged this debate1,8,9,13,14. Regardless it is clear that the use of antimicrobials (therapeutic and sub-therapeutic) in both animals and humans select for resistant bacterial populations. The question then becomes “are the populations of resistant bacteria observed in animals and humans independent or do they share a common pool with antimicrobial resistant bacteria in animals posing a threat to human health?”1,8.

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