GARDP announces new North American branch
The Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership (GARDP), based in Geneva, Switzerland, this week announced the formation of a new sister organization in the United States.
GARDP and GARDP North America will work together on a common portfolio of projects that aim to accelerate the development and delivery of treatments for antibiotic-resistant infections caused by the priority pathogens identified by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a GARDP news release.
Created by the WHO and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, GARDP works with partners in government, the private sector, academia, and civil society to develop and ensure sustainable access to new antibiotics. Likewise, GARDP North America will champion new drug development and global access and promote policies aimed at incentivizing antibiotic development, while focusing on strengthening ties with current and future partners in the United States.
"It will tap into the U.S.'s strong tradition of partnerships between the public, non-profit, and private sectors to realize global and public health objectives," GARDP says.
Mar 28 GARDP North America news release
Study finds high levels of resistance in US urine isolates
A study of Enterobacterales urine isolates from more than 650 US healthcare facilities found high levels of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with clear geographic variations, US researchers reported yesterday in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases.
For the retrospective study, researchers examined more than 1.3 million non-duplicate, non-contaminant Enterobacterales urine isolates collected from ambulatory and hospitalized adult patients at 321 inpatient and 338 ambulatory care facilities from 2018 through 2020. They evaluated the percentage of non-susceptible isolates overall, by geographic region, and by inpatient and ambulatory populations.
Nationwide, high rates of resistance to antibiotics used for urinary tract infections (UTIs) were observed, including beta-lactams (60.8% and 55.8% for inpatient and ambulatory settings, respectively), fluoroquinolones (27.5% and 21.6%), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (25.4% and 22.4%), and nitrofurantoin (27% and 21.6%). Isolates with an extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing phenotype (13.2% and 8.6%) and multidrug resistance (23.4% and 17.7% for ≥2 drugs; 9.9% and 6.4% for ≥3 drugs) were also common.
Statistically significant differences by geographic region were observed for all AMR classes in both inpatient and ambulatory settings, with the highest rates generally observed in the East South Central region.
The study authors note that while there were clear geographic variations, all regions showed AMR levels high enough to negate the use of common empiric UTI therapies according to Infectious Diseases Society of America recommended thresholds (>20% for trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole and >10% for nitrofurantoin).
"The elevated levels of resistance to commonly used empiric UTI therapies highlight the need for new oral antibiotics effective against resistant uropathogens," they wrote. "Until such therapies are available, appropriate UTI management may require judicial use of pathogen diagnostic tests and antimicrobial susceptibility panels along with antimicrobial stewardship programs designed to reduce resistance in uropathogens."
Mar 29 Int J Infect Dis study