Antibiotic resistance is escalating at a pace that is outstripping the progress of medical innovations, posing a potential threat to billions globally.

The World Health Organization’s Global Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance Report reveals a concerning trend: in 2023, one in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections responsible for common illnesses worldwide showed resistance to antibiotic treatments.

The report highlights a troubling increase in antibiotic resistance, noting a 40 percent rise between 2018 and 2023, which translates to an annual growth of 5 to 15 percent.

Anita Williams, from the Centre for Child Health Research at the University of Western Australia, commented on these findings, describing them as “alarming but not surprising.”

While expressing concern, Williams added a silver lining, noting that the rate of antibiotic resistance among Australian children remains lower than the global average.

“Whilst globally 45 per cent of E coli were resistant to 3rd generation cephalosporins, in Australian children it was only 21.5 per cent. For methicillin-resistant staph aureus (MRSA), globally it was 27.1 per cent, whilst in Australian children it was 13.6 per cent.”

However, she said, antibiotic resistance from bacteria in children was nonetheless on the rise in the country.

Professor Mark Blaskovich from the Institute for Molecular Bioscience said that the nearby South East Asia region had one of the highest levels of resistance at 31 per cent, which posed a potential danger of transmission to travellers.

“Particularly worrying is the finding that some of our more powerful antibiotics are being used more widely than they should be, meaning that resistance to these important antibiotics will continue to develop more quickly than it should, leading to their obsolescence,” he said.

“This leads to the need for new antibiotics, but as outlined in another recent WHO report, the development pipeline for new antibacterial agents is sparsely populated.

“While Australia is doing relatively well compared to the rest of the world, it must not be complacent and should commit to funding research that combats antibiotic resistance.”

Multiple experts noted that in countries with weaker health systems – usually poorer countries – the problem was, but that the current hyper-connectivity of the world meant transmission of resistant bacteria could happen very easily.

“Because about five million deaths were associated with antimicrobial resistance (not just antibiotics, but also antivirals and antifungals),” Associate Professor Sanjaya Senanayake from The Australian National University said.

“By 2050, this could reach 10 million deaths a year and have a negative impact on global GDP with global losses of US$100 trillion ($153.4 trillion).”

He and others rejected the idea that tightening prescription requirements for antibiotics was a catch-all solution.

“It is not just an issue of doctors prescribing antibiotics inappropriately. Instead, it also includes the vast spectrum of antimicrobial use not just in humans, but also in animals and plants, the use of the unprescribed over-the-counter antibiotics, the contamination of waterways with antibiotics, and the development of new antibiotics,” he said.

“Developing new antibiotics, however, is not cost-effective for businesses, so they require healthy government subsidies to make it attractive for pharmaceutical companies.”

Reece Pharmaceuticals chief executive James Graham said most antibiotic classes had been discovered between the 1940s and 1980s.

“This innovation gap is colliding with escalating global resistance, leaving doctors with fewer options and patients at greater risk,” he said.

“Infections that were once easily treated now mean longer hospital stays, higher treatment costs, and, in some cases, preventable amputations such as those seen in diabetic foot infections.”

Associate Professor Andreea Molnar from Swinburne University of Technology laid out the problem starkly, saying without effective antibiotics, even “routine” surgeries were “dangerously risky”.

While multiple experts are calling for better surveillance and increased incentives from government, Dr Trent Yarwood of the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases, said everybody had a part to play.

“Prevent infections by washing your hands, getting vaccinated and practising good food safety,” he said.

“Only take antibiotics when they are necessary and only for as long as is recommended by your doctor.”