Title: Global Health Challenge: Iran’s Medical Experts Lead Call for Rational Antibiotic Use
A Looming Global Health Crisis
In an exclusive interview with Mehr News Agency, Dr. Shirin Afhami, a specialist in infection prevention and control and a faculty member at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, has issued a critical warning on the global rise of antimicrobial resistance. Dr. Afhami explained that following the discovery of penicillin, it was believed that humanity had overcome microbes. However, it soon became clear that microorganisms could develop resistance to antibiotics.
“While resistance levels were not high in the early years,” Dr. Afhami stated, “today, the increase in diseases that require hospitalization, invasive treatments, chemotherapy, or the use of biological drugs has led to a significant rise in opportunistic infections.”
The Acceleration of Resistance in Healthcare Settings
The expert highlighted that as patients visit medical centers more frequently and are exposed to various antibiotics, microbial resistance develops faster and spreads more easily. This is particularly acute in high-risk areas like Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and surgical wards, where transmission opportunities are abundant. The severity of resistance in some microorganisms has reached a point where they are now resistant to almost all major classes of antibiotics.
Education: The Foundational Pillar of Prevention
Dr. Afhami identified education as one of the primary tools to combat this phenomenon, emphasizing that it must begin in childhood. “Many healthcare behaviors are formed at a young age,” she noted. “When a child observes their parents requesting antibiotics from a doctor for a simple fever or minor respiratory symptoms, the belief forms that every symptom requires antibiotic treatment.”
Antibiotics: A Precious Resource to be Preserved
The specialist stressed that every use of an antibiotic creates the possibility for a microbe to develop resistance through genetic mutation or other mechanisms. This means a drug that was effective the first time may not work in a subsequent encounter.
“Antibiotics should only be prescribed when a bacterial infection is confirmed,” Dr. Afhami asserted. “For instance, a patient with a urinary tract infection confirmed by a culture test requires treatment. However, many upper respiratory infections are viral in nature and do not require antibiotics; symptomatic treatment is sufficient.” She strongly emphasized that drug prescriptions must be based solely on a physician’s diagnosis, not on the recommendations of others or the direct request of a patient.
A Collective Responsibility: Physicians, Pharmacists, and Industry
Dr. Afhami outlined the three key players in the responsible use of antibiotics: physicians, pharmacists, and pharmaceutical companies. She called for the production and supply of standard, effective drugs and for stricter controls on the sale of medications without a prescription. Physicians, she advised, must not yield to patient pressure and prescribe antibiotics for every minor fever or symptom.
Addressing the Agricultural Link
The expert also addressed the use of antibiotics in poultry and livestock farming, warning that the entry of these drugs into the human food chain contributes to resistance in the human body and other organisms. She called for serious reforms and stringent oversight in this sector.
National Progress in a Global Fight
Concluding on a positive note, Dr. Afhami pointed to the effective measures undertaken by the Ministry of Health and medical universities in the fields of healthcare, treatment, and research. “Fortunately,” she stated, “these efforts have led to a reduction in the growth rate of microbial resistance compared to the past and have increased public awareness on this critical issue.”