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CDC expects to publish new MDRO estimates in 2019
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The CDC expects to publish new estimates on the impact of antibiotic-resistant infections in the United States sometime in 2019.
In 2013, the agency published a report estimating that more than 2 million illnesses and at least 23,000 deaths are caused by drug-resistant infections annually in the United States — numbers that have frequently been cited by researchers and the media. It was the agency’s first attempt at estimating the burden of drug-resistant infections.
Recently, researchers estimated that the number of deaths caused by multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) may actually be at least seven time higher.
Jason P. Burnham, MD, instructor in medicine in the division of infectious diseases at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and colleagues used available data from 2010 to show that at least 153,113 — and maybe as many as 162,044 — deaths in the U.S. were due to infections caused by MDROs.
Infectious Disease News asked the CDC if it was considering re-estimating the annual impact of MDROs in the U.S. and was told that the effort was already underway. In a statement, the agency said the initial numbers were a “conservative estimate, and only a starting point for more in-depth study.”
“CDC has been developing new methodologies to provide the most accurate data possible. A new threat report is expected to be published in 2019. The new threat report will include updated infection numbers, trend analysis and updated mortality estimates,” the CDC said. – by Marley Ghizzone
References:
Burnham JP, et al. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2018;doi:10.1017/ice.2018.304.
CDC. Antibiotic resistance threats in the United States, 2013. https://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/pdf/ar-threats-2013-508.pdf. Accessed December 18, 2018.
Disclosure: Burnham reports no relevant financial disclosures.