| dc.description.abstract | The discovery, development, and clinical use of antibiotics during the 20th
century have decreased substantially the morbidity and mortality from bacterial
infections.
Since 1980, a reduced rate of introduction of new agents has been
accompanied by an alarming increase in bacterial resistance to existing agents,
resulting in the emergence of a serious threat to global public health. The intense
use and misuse of antibiotics are the major forces associated with the high numbers
of resistant pathogenic and commensal bacteria worldwide. Both the volume and
the way antibiotics are applied contributes to the selection of resistant strains. Still,
other social, ecological and genetic factors affect a direct relationship between use
and frequency of resistance. Unfortunately, the increasing emergence of acquired
resistance to antibiotics seriously threatens their effectiveness for the therapy of
both nosocomial and community-acquired infections. The development of new
prophylactic and therapeutic procedures is urgently required to meet the challenges
imposed by the emergence of bacterial resistance. | en_US |
