Farmers critical in fight against antimicrobial resistance - expert

An animal health expert has warned that the burden of resistance of bacteria to common antibiotics is likely to be worse, unless urgent steps are taken to address animal welfare.

The Brooke East Africa regional director Dr Raphael Kinoti has reiterated the need for all county governments to come up with an animal welfare policy.

Kinoti has further noted that farmers play a critical role in helping address the burden of antimicrobial resistance as adding controlling of parasites will ensure less disease that would require use of drugs.

According to Kinoti, some farmers treat animals without completing the required treatment regimen, causing resistance to the drugs.

“When a cow gets mastitis and you buy the tubes to push the drug into the teat of the cow, you are supposed to use it for three to five days but most farmers will do it just for one day,” he said.

“You are causing resistance when you expose that bacteria to this drug inadequately because that drug will not work tomorrow,” he added.

“When you push that tube into the udder of that animal, when you milk that milk and take it to the market it is wrong. Drugs have withdrawal period so when you feed us with milk that has very direct drugs that we use for animals eventually you are causing resistance,” he noted.

Resistance to antibiotics arises when infections caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi or parasites become resistant to drugs designed to treat them.

Experts in the recent past have raised alarm that treatment of diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDs is at risk from the threat of resistance to antibiotics, unless an urgent action is taken to reverse the trend.

Without effective antimicrobials, the success of modern medicine in treating infections, including during major surgery and cancer chemotherapy, would be at increased risk.

The World Health Organsiation warns that the cost of AMR to the economy is significant.

In addition to death and disability, prolonged illness results in longer hospital stays, the need for more expensive medicines and financial challenges for those impacted.

“The clinical pipeline of new antimicrobials is dry. Antibiotics are becoming increasingly ineffective as drug-resistance spreads globally leading to more difficult to treat infections and death. New antibacterials are urgently needed,” WHO said.