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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)

AMR poses a major threat to human health around the world. AMR occurs when microorganisms, such as bacteria, adapt in ways that make currently available treatments for infections less effective.

Photo by CDC, Unsplash.

21.36 million people who died globally in 2021 had sepsis as an immediate cause of death or in the chain of events leading to their death.
4.71 million people who died in 2021 suffered from drug-resistant infections, such as lower respiratory, bloodstream, and intra-abdominal infections.
1.14 million deaths in 2021 were directly caused by AMR.
39 million people are expected to die from AMR between 2025 and 2050.

Key findings

Based on estimates for 204 countries and territories, IHME’s paper “Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance 1990–2021: a systematic analysis with forecasts to 2050” reveals that AMR will continue to be a leading cause of death globally.

Nearly 5 million people who died suffered from AMR-related illness, such as a resistant lower respiratory or bloodstream infection, in 2021.

Over a million people are now dying each year solely because bacteria have become resistant to treatment (deaths directly attributable to resistance). 

 

Explore the data visual

Chart showing the majority of global infection-related deaths were caused by sepsis at 21.36 million deaths in 2021

Deaths attributable to AMR are projected to reach nearly 2 million by 2050.

92 million infectious deaths (including both those involving AMR and those that are caused by a drug-susceptible pathogen) could be prevented between 2025 and 2050 through a combination of better health care for severe infections and access to antibiotics.

 

Read more in the publication

A line chart showing forecasted deaths attributable to antibiotic-resistant infections increasing from 1.17 million in 2025 to 1.91 million in 2050.

Inequalities across regions are significant.

Out of the 92 million deaths that could be averted through better health care for severe infections and access to antibiotics, many of them would be in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, underscoring inequalities across location.

 

Read more in the publication

Bar chart showing the number of deaths that could be averted through better health care for severe infections and access to antibiotics by super-region: notably Sub-Saharan Africa could save 25.17 million lives, South Asia could save 31.66 million, and Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania could save 18.74 million
Interactive data visual

AMR threatens health systems everywhere.

Use the MICROBE (Measuring Infectious Causes and Resistance Outcomes for Burden Estimation) tool to visualize the health estimates of infections, pathogens, and antimicrobial resistance across different geographies and time periods.

bar chart showing total infectious syndrome deaths per 100k in 2021, with the highest rate caused by LRI and bloodstream infections

How do we combat AMR?

Bacteria are gaining resistance faster than new antibiotics can be developed, but decision-makers can use this information about AMR to inform development of new drugs or vaccines. Effective vaccines are particularly important since they would reduce the need for antibiotic use. 

In the meantime, essential medicines need to be made accessible. In addition, more data is needed, particularly from lower-income countries; increasing high-quality tracking of AMR would bring greater clarity to this issue and empower doctors to make informed prescribing decisions in the clinic.

There are more immediate actions that can help countries around the world protect their health systems against the threat of AMR:

  • Take greater action to monitor and control infections, globally, nationally and within individual hospitals.
  • Accelerate our support for infection prevention and control, as well as expand access to vaccines and clean water and sanitation.
  • Optimize our use of antibiotics unrelated to treating human disease, such as in food and animal production – taking a One Health approach and recognizing the interconnection between human and animal health.
  • Be thoughtful about our use of antimicrobial treatments – expanding access to lifesaving antibiotics where needed, minimizing use where it is not necessary to improve human health, and acting according to the World Health Organization Global Action Plan and AWaRE guidelines.
  • Increase funding at every stage of the development pipeline for new antimicrobials targeting priority pathogens – from research for high-priority bacteria, such as K. pneumoniae and E. coli, to securing access through innovative market solutions.

Read the research

 

See the impact in your country

We developed individual country briefings on AMR for 204 countries and territories. These briefings are intended for key stakeholders working on AMR to help raise awareness of the real burden of antimicrobial resistance across different countries and regions.

View policy briefings

Common questions about AMR