A 59-year-old man from India, who was living in Sweden, visited New Delhi in late 2007, where he was hospitalized for an infection and treated with an array of antibiotics. Once he was back in Sweden, in early 2008, he was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection that could not be cured with the antibiotics that are considered a last resort against resistant infections. When scientists examined the bacteria in his infection they found a new antibiotic resistance gene, which was named “New Delhi Metallo-beta-lactamase-1” – or NDM-1.
NDM-1 is serious: In India, nearly a quarter of patients infected with bacteria carrying this gene die. And NDM-1 has travelled fast: by 2015, strains had appeared in more than 70 countries in all regions of the world. It has also been found in the environment in both India and Vietnam.
The story of NDM’s origin and rapid travels demonstrates the need for local, national, and global actions to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics.
Comentarios recientes