Drug-resistant infections are already common, leading to longer hospital stays and higher medical costs, as well as increased mortality. In 2019, 4.91 million deaths were associated with bacterial AMR, and by 2050 the number could increase to 10 million deaths per year globally, generating annual costs of $300 billion to more than 1 trillion dollars.
In the EU/European Economic Area (EEA), the health impact of AMR is comparable to the combined impact of influenza, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, and it is estimated that by 2050, AMR will cause over 569 million extra hospital days per year.
Vaccination has been widely recognized as an indispensable tool in the fight against AMR. Vaccines are effective before the bacteria start to multiply and before different tissues and organs are affected. This decreases the likelihood of the spread of resistant mutations. Evidence shows that the introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the US resulted in an 84% reduction in invasive disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae drug resistant in children under two years of age. Positive results have been observed in the case of vaccination against Haemophilus influenzae tip B. A recent study examined the preventable burden of AMR by vaccination against 15 primary age group pathogens. For the implications of bacterial AMR, the study found that vaccines could help avoid 0.51 million deaths and 28 million disability-adjusted life years (DALY).
Developing vaccines that target resistant pathogens is an extremely difficult task. Vaccines Europe members play an important role in addressing AMR, in line with the strategy developed by WHO as a technical annex to the 2030 Immunization Agenda.
Vaccines that prevent viral infections also play an important role in combating the misuse and overuse of antibiotics, either by reducing erroneous prescriptions that encourage the treatment of viral diseases with antibiotics or by preventing secondary superinfections. There is increasing evidence in this direction for vaccination against rotavirus, influenza, varicella and dengue fever; similar trends are expected for COVID-19 and RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus).
E.g, a recent study showed that giving an RSV vaccine to pregnant mothers would reduce the prescription of antimicrobials for their babies by 12.9% in the first three months of life. When it comes to COVID-19, evidence shows that between 2020 and 2022, antibiotics were prescribed to about 75% of patients with COVID-19, even though less than 10% of them developed bacterial co-infection.
There are currently 15 vaccine candidates in development targeting antibiotic-resistant bacteria on the WHO list of priority pathogens. In addition, 50 candidates against COVID-19, dengue, influenza, RSV and varicella/zoster are in development.
Source: www.vaccineseurope.eu
2024-01-09 08:02:44
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