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Biofilm exacerbates antibiotic resistance: Is this a current oversight in antimicrobial stewardship?

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:To raise awareness of the role of environmental biofilm in the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance and its consideration in antimicrobial stewardship. BACKGROUND:Antibiotic resistance is a major threat to public health. Overuse of antibiotics, increased international travel, and genetic promiscuity amongst bacteria have contributed to antibiotic resistance, and global containment efforts have so far met with limited success. Antibiotic resistance is a natural mechanism by which bacteria have adapted to environmental threats over billions of years and is caused either by genetic mutations or by horizontal gene transfer. Another ancient survival strategy involves bacteria existing within a self-produced polymeric matrix, which today is termed biofilm. Biofilm similarly enables bacterial tolerance to environmental threats, and also encourages the transfer of antibiotic resistance genes between bacterial species. This natural and ubiquitous mode of bacterial life has not been considered amongst strategies to tackle antibiotic resistance in healthcare facilities, despite its ability to significantly enhance bacterial survival and persistence, and to encourage antibiotic resistance. CONCLUSION:Biofilm must be considered synonymously with antibiotic resistance because of its proficiency in transferring resistance genes as well as its innate phenotypic tolerance to antibiotics. Although biofilm falls outside of the current definition of antimicrobial stewardship, greater awareness of the existence, ubiquity, and consequences of environmental biofilm amongst healthcare practitioners is crucial to improving hygiene practices and controlling the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance in healthcare facilities.

SUBMITTER: Bowler P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7576703 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Biofilm exacerbates antibiotic resistance: Is this a current oversight in antimicrobial stewardship?

Bowler Philip P Murphy Christine C Wolcott Randall R

Antimicrobial resistance and infection control 20201020 1

<h4>Objective</h4>To raise awareness of the role of environmental biofilm in the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance and its consideration in antimicrobial stewardship.<h4>Background</h4>Antibiotic resistance is a major threat to public health. Overuse of antibiotics, increased international travel, and genetic promiscuity amongst bacteria have contributed to antibiotic resistance, and global containment efforts have so far met with limited success. Antibiotic resistance is a natural m ...[more]

PMID: 33081846

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Project description:IntroductionExcessive administration of antibiotics to preterm infants is associated with increased rates of complications. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effect of an antimicrobial stewardship intervention on antibiotic use in extremely preterm infants.Design setting patients and interventionA before and after study of infants born at ≤28 weeks' gestational age was performed in the neonatal intensive care unit of Queen Silvia's Children's Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden. Retrospective analysis of the baseline period (January-December 2014) guided the development of a limited antimicrobial stewardship intervention. The intervention consisted of updated local guidelines with a focus on shortened and standardised treatment duration plus increased access to infectious disease consultant advice. It was fully implemented during the intervention period (October 2017-September 2018).ObjectivePrimary aim was to compare antibiotic use, defined as antibiotic treatment days per 1000 patient-days, between the two periods, and the secondary aim was to evaluate the number of days with meropenem-based regimens before and after the intervention.ResultsWe included 145 infants with a median birth weight of 870 g and median gestational age of 26 weeks. The baseline period comprised 82 infants and 3478 patient-days, the intervention period comprised 63 infants and 2753 patient-days. Overall antibiotic use (treatment and prophylaxis) was 534 versus 466 days per 1000 patient-days during the baseline and intervention periods, respectively. Antibiotic treatment days decreased from 287 to 197 days per 1000 patient-days. The proportion of meropenem-based regimens was 69% versus 44%, respectively. No increases in mortality or reinitiation of antibiotics were seen.ConclusionsImplementation of a limited antimicrobial stewardship intervention anchored in analysis of previous prescription patterns can contribute to safe decreases in antibiotic use in extremely preterm infants.

Dataset Information

Biofilm exacerbates antibiotic resistance: Is this a current oversight in antimicrobial stewardship?

Publications

Biofilm exacerbates antibiotic resistance: Is this a current oversight in antimicrobial stewardship?

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