Thiruvananthapuram: Recognizing that the misuse and overuse of anti-microbials are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant pathogens, the Kerala government has decided to cancel the licenses of pharmacies selling antibiotics without a doctor's prescription.

The government also announced steps to make all primary health centers in Kerala "antibiotic-smart" primary health centers as part of strengthening its anti-microbial resistance (AMR) activities in the southern state.

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), according to the World Health Organization (WHO), occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites evolve over time and cease to respond to antibiotics, making infections more difficult to treat and raising the risk of disease spread, life-threatening illness, and death.

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As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines become ineffective and infections become increasingly difficult or impossible to treat.

The state Health Department cited one major factor contributing to the rise in antibiotic resistance as the direct purchase of antibiotics from pharmacies without a prescription.

The Health Department has made the decision to strictly forbid it. The licenses of pharmacies that sell antibiotics without a doctor's prescription will be revoked under strict instructions, the statement said.

The decision was taken at the annual review meeting of KARSAP (Kerala Anti-Microbial Resistance Strategic Action Plan), chaired by Health Minister Veena George, here on Wednesday.

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The statement said the meeting evaluated the antimicrobial resistance activities being carried out in Kerala in detail and decided to strengthen awareness about it by intensifying activities for antibiotic literacy with the support of the media.

The gathering also noted studies in the areas of environment, fisheries, animal husbandry, and aquaculture that demonstrated an increase in antibiotic resistance.

"Antibiotics have been found to be used unscientifically not only in humans but also in animal husbandry, poultry farming, fish farming, etc.

Moreover, even in the samples collected from the environment, bacteria and genes capable of resisting antibiotics have been found. The unscientific use of antibiotics in all sectors led to this situation," it said.

The WHO has said the emergence and spread of drug-resistant pathogens that have acquired new resistance mechanisms continue to threaten our ability to treat common infections.

According to the report, the rapid global spread of multi- and pan-resistant bacteria, also referred to as "superbugs," which cause infections that cannot be treated with current antimicrobial medications like antibiotics, is particularly concerning.

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