Antibiotic resistance and how to act on it

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacterial colonies represents a significant threat to worldwide public health. A recent Department of Health statement concluded: ‘There are few public health issues of greater importance than antimicrobial resistance in terms of impact on society. This problem is not restricted to the UK. It concerns the entire world and requires action at local, national and global level’ (Department of Health, 2013).

Dental professionals should be aware of the issue of antibiotic resistance. They can play an important role in stemming the tide of the problem.

Since their introduction in the 1940s, antibiotics have saved millions of lives, curing bacterial infections that would have previously proved fatal. However, soon after their earliest trials, it became evident that some bacteria were naturally resistant to these agents. Alexander Fleming warned: ‘The time may come when penicillin can be bought by anyone in the shops. Then there is the danger that the ignorant man may easily underdose himself and by exposing his microbes to non-lethal quantities of the drug make them resistant’ (Fleming, 1945).