Bacterial Infections : Special Topic Issue: Chemotherapy 1999, Vol. 45, No. 2

The emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance is one of the major health problems today that confronts all of us: the patient, the physician and the economy.

Patients may acquire resistant bacteria either by the action of antibacterials on their own bacterial flora or by acquisition from other patients, hospital staff or the environment.

The most highly resistant bacteria, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or vancomycin-resistant enterococcus, have been isolated from intensive-care patients; however, significant pockets of antibiotic resistance also exist in the community, e.g. penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae. Physicians treating community or hospitalacquired infections have to select the appropriate antibiotic to optimize treatment and to minimize the likelihood of resistance.

Unfavorable socioeconomic conditions often lead to bad patient compliance and, therefore, contribute to the emergence of resistance.

Bacterial resistance also poses a serious economic threat through increased health care costs and loss of productive work force.

This publication addresses select topics of antibiotic resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and enterococci.

Special consideration is given to the epidemiology of resistance.

The papers by experts in the field provide microbiologists and infectious disease specialists with useful information for selecting the appropriate antibacterial.