Watan-A study conducted by two experts in child health revealed that more than 3 million children around the world died in 2022 as a result of antibiotic-resistant infections. It showed that children in Africa and Southeast Asia are the most at risk.
Antibiotic resistance develops when the microbes that cause infections evolve in ways that make antibiotics ineffective. It has been identified as one of the greatest public health threats facing the global population.
The study’s authors based their findings on data from multiple sources, including the World Health Organization, and concluded that there were more than 3 million child deaths in 2022 linked to drug-resistant infections. This figure may have been exacerbated by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rising Use of Antibiotics
Antibiotics are used to treat or prevent a wide range of bacterial infections, from skin infections to pneumonia.
They are sometimes given as a precaution to prevent infections rather than to treat them—for example, if someone is undergoing surgery or receiving chemotherapy for cancer.
However, antibiotics have no effect on viral infections such as the common cold, the flu, or COVID-19.
Some bacteria have now developed resistance to certain drugs due to overuse or improper use of antibiotics, while the development of new antibiotics has significantly slowed down because it’s a lengthy and costly process.
The lead authors of the report—Dr. Yanhong Jessica from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia, and Professor Herb Harwell from the Clinton Health Access Initiative—point to a major increase in the use of antibiotics that are supposed to be reserved for the most severe infections.
Between 2019 and 2021, the use of “watch antibiotics”—which carry a high risk of resistance—increased by 160% in Southeast Asia and 126% in Africa.
During the same period, the use of “reserve antibiotics”—those used to treat severe infections resistant to multiple drugs—rose by 45% in Southeast Asia and 125% in Africa.
Diminishing Options
The study’s authors warn that if bacteria develop resistance to these reserve antibiotics, there will be few, if any, alternatives left to treat multidrug-resistant infections.
Harwell presented the findings at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Vienna this month.
He said, “Antibiotic resistance is a global problem; it affects everyone. We conducted this work to highlight the disproportionate impact that antimicrobial resistance has on children.”
He added, “We estimate the number of child deaths worldwide due to antimicrobial resistance at three million.”
Is There a Solution to Antimicrobial Resistance?
The World Health Organization describes antimicrobial resistance as one of the most serious global health threats we face, but speaking from Vienna, Professor Harwell warned that there are no easy answers.
He said, “It’s a multifaceted problem that touches every aspect of medicine—and really, human life.”
He added, “Antibiotics are everywhere around us, and they end up in our food and environment. So finding a single solution is not simple.”
He emphasized that the best way to avoid antibiotic-resistant infections is to avoid infections altogether, which means higher levels of immunity, sanitation, and hygiene are needed.
“There will be more antibiotic use, because more people need them, but we must ensure they’re used appropriately and that the right drugs are used,” he said.
Dr. Lindsay Edwards, a senior lecturer in microbiology at King’s College London, said the new study “represents a significant and alarming increase compared to previous data.”
She concluded: “These findings should serve as a wake-up call for global health leaders. Without decisive action, antimicrobial resistance could undermine decades of progress in child health—especially in the world’s most vulnerable regions.”
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