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VIDEO: Experts focus on vaccines to combat antimicrobial resistance
BALTIMORE — Bruce G. Gellin, MD, MPH, director of the National Vaccine Program Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, discusses the role of vaccines in reducing the global threat of drug-resistant bacterial infections. Gellin, who is also the executive secretary for the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, says that by simply preventing infections, vaccines can help reduce antibiotic use. Moreover, vaccines can reduce clinical illnesses that are often mistaken for bacterial infections, thereby avoiding unnecessary prescriptions. Infections such as MRSA, Clostridium difficile and others are being targeted by vaccines currently in development.
Vaccines represent just one aspect of a comprehensive strategy to reverse the growing trend of antimicrobial resistance, according to Gellin.
Disclosure: Gellin reports no relevant financial disclosures.