Overuse and misuse of antimicrobial drugs could lead to a global resistance.

Scientists are calling for an international commitment to tackle the growing global resistance to antibiotics and other drugs, on the same scale as that given to addressing climate change.

Bacterial infections are developing increasing resistance to antibiotics, and parasites, viruses and fungi are developing resistance to antimicrobial drugs.

Many infectious diseases are already reduced to treatment options of one or two drugs, and if action isn’t taken, experts say the world faces a future in which infections which have been treatable for decades will become deadly diseases.

These concerns were voiced by Professor Mark Woolhouse from the University of Edinburgh and Dr Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust at an event hosted by the Royal Society of London. They also published a comment piece online in the journal Nature this week.

Comparisons were made between the threats posed by the growing antimicrobial resistance, and those of climate change. Both issues stem from natural processes that have been exacerbated by human activity, in this case overuse or misuse of antimicrobial drugs.

The two authors also raised concerns about the weak international response to the issue. They pointed out that, like climate change, the actions of one country could have a global impact.

It was suggested that a way to address the issue would be to found a powerful global organisation, similar to the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change (IPCC) to lead an international response. The proposed independent body should work alongside national governments and international agencies to oversee surveillance efforts, set evidence based targets, and speed development of new therapies.

Professor Mark Woolhouse, of the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Immunity, Infection and Evolution, said: “The time has come to stop re-stating the problems of antimicrobial resistance and start taking action. We need independent international leadership on this issue before the massive health gains that have been made since Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin are lost forever”.