Livestock and Fisheries Minister Md Abdur Rahman laid emphasis on optimum use of antimicrobial medicines to prevent and treat infectious diseases in humans, animals and plants.

"Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) has emerged as one of the top public health problem . . . we have to ensure proper use of antimicrobial medicines to fight against different diseases," he told a workshop here, an official release said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) organized the workshop styled "Proper use of antibiotic for prevention of Antimicrobial Resistance".
 
Rahman said Antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to antimicrobial medicines.
 
As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines become ineffective and infections become difficult or impossible to treat, increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness, disability and death, he added.

The minister said, "Antimicrobial medicines are equally important for both human and animal health. So, it is urgent to identify its effect and ensure proper use to save animal kingdoms from different infectious diseases."

He urged relevant organizations to take measures so that registered doctors and Veterinarians would be allowed to prescribe antibiotics medicines to treat different infectious diseases.

According to World Health Organization (WHO), Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top global public health and development threats. It is
estimated that bacterial AMR was directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019 and contributed to 4.95 million deaths.

The misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals and plants are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant pathogens, the WHO said adding AMR puts many of the gains of modern medicine at risk.