Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)
Public Health and Policy
Definition. Antimicrobial resistance is the ability of bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites to survive medicines that were previously effective against them.
Explanation
Resistance arises through natural selection and spreads faster when antimicrobials are overused or misused in human medicine, agriculture and animal health. The World Health Organization treats it as a One Health problem that requires action across sectors.
The Global Research on Antimicrobial Resistance collaborators estimated that bacterial AMR was directly responsible for about 1.27 million deaths in 2019 (Antimicrobial Resistance Collaborators, 2022). In hospitals, responses combine infection prevention, surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship.
Related concepts
Read on The Health Topics
- Understanding Antimicrobial Resistance: A Sociological Perspective
- SPAARTA: Policy Analysis for Antimicrobial Resistance
- Emerging Technologies for Detecting Antibiotic Resistance
- Domestic Laundering and Antimicrobial Resistance: A Public Health Concern
- Chlorine Dioxide: A Defense Against Biofilms and Superbugs
- The Most Popular Research Methods and Analysis Techniques in Management and Organisation Research
References
Antimicrobial Resistance Collaborators. (2022). Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance in 2019: A systematic analysis. The Lancet, 399(10325), 629–655.
O’Neill, J. (2016). Tackling drug-resistant infections globally: Final report and recommendations. Review on Antimicrobial Resistance.
World Health Organization. (2015). Global action plan on antimicrobial resistance. WHO.
Cite this entry: Kurutkan, M. N. (2026). Antimicrobial resistance. In The Health Topics glossary. https://healthtopic.org/glossary/antimicrobial-resistance/
Articles that discuss this concept
15 articles on The Health Topics use this concept; the 12 that use it most are listed. The list updates as new articles are published.
- Understanding Antimicrobial Resistance: A Sociological Perspective 25
- SPAARTA: Policy Analysis for Antimicrobial Resistance 19
- Emerging Technologies for Detecting Antibiotic Resistance 15
- AI Against AMR: A Bibliometric Review 11
- Chlorine Dioxide: A Defense Against Biofilms and Superbugs 8
- Domestic Laundering and Antimicrobial Resistance: A Public Health Concern 6
- The Most Popular Research Methods and Analysis Techniques in Management and Organisation Research 6
- Redefining Water Safety in Healthcare Premises 4
- Reducing Surgical Infections and Optimizing Antibiotics 3
- Identifying Health Needs: The NEED Assessment Framework 2
- Assuring Safety Across Clinical Processes 2
- Reducing Inappropriate Antibiotic Use for Respiratory Infections 2