The threat of antibiotic resistance — in charts

In this article, the authors compile data from the Access to Medicine Foundation, the Centre for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy (CDDEP), Pew Charitable Trusts, and The Farm Animal Investment Risk & Return initiative (FAIRR) to highlight the challenges created by antibiotic overuse both in humans and in animals farmed for food. The authors illustrate the issues with the use of charts and graphs from these organisations.

The authors note that while efforts to measure trends in antibiotic use have been historically limited, programmes such as the Access to Medicine Foundation's Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark, along with other government and nonprofit initiatives, work to track antibiotic usage and encourage action against antimicrobial resistance.

The authors write that the Foundation's Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark "tracks the activities of pharmaceutical companies on antimicrobial resistance, providing a tool for investors and policymakers." They quote the Benchmark report, noting that “the pace of change in 2020 does not match the scale of the AMR challenge”.