Overused Antibiotics in Food Animals Pose Threats

New research shows that antibiotic-resistant urinary tract infections (UTIs) that can lead to trips to the emergency department may be a result of the overuse of antibiotics in food animals, according to a study reported in the January 15, 2005, issue of Clinical Infectious diseases.

Researchers identified Escherichia coli from animal guts that are highly similar to the multidrug-resistant bacteria previously associated with an outbreak of urinary tract infections in women in California. This identification of the bacteria in food animals strengthens the case that multidrug-resistant UTIs have a food-animal origin. The research was conducted by experts at the School of Public Health of the University of California at Berkeley (USA).

Food animals are routinely given the same antibiotics that doctors use to treat humans, such as sulfa drugs and penicillin. Enormous quantities of these drugs are used. Research by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS, Washington, DC, USA) estimates that more than 13 million pounds of such drugs are used every year in swine, poultry, and cattle--not for therapy but to promote growth and well-being in the stressful crowded conditions that are typical of industrial agriculture.

"When urinary infections do not respond to standard antibiotic treatments, the delays in finding an effective antibiotic can prolong the course of the disease and sometimes lead to trips to the emergency room,” noted Dr. Margaret Mellon, director of the Food and Agriculture Program at the UCS.




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