Why in the News?
A study published in The Lancet Public Health finds that India overuses ‘Watch’ category antibiotics while underusing ‘Access’ and ‘Reserve’ category drugs under the World Health Organization (WHO)’s AWaRe (Access, Watch, Reserve) classification, raising concerns about the country’s antimicrobial resistance (AMR) trajectory.
Key Highlights
- The study is based on Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) prescription data analysed using the WHO AWaRe classification.
- India shows disproportionate use of broad-spectrum ‘Watch’ category antibiotics, which carry a higher risk of antimicrobial resistance.
- ‘Access’ category antibiotics (first-line, lower resistance risk) and ‘Reserve’ category antibiotics (last-resort drugs) are comparatively underused.
Back2Basics
WHO AWaRe Classification (2017)
- Access: First-line antibiotics for common infections; narrow-spectrum drugs with the lowest resistance risk.
- Watch: Broad-spectrum antibiotics with higher resistance potential; should be prescribed selectively.
- Reserve: Last-resort antibiotics for treating multidrug-resistant infections; should be used only when all other options fail.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
- Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is the ability of microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites) to survive exposure to drugs that would normally kill them or inhibit their growth.
- It is primarily driven by the overuse and misuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals, and agriculture.
(2019) Which of the following are the reasons for the occurrence of multi-drug resistance in microbial pathogens in India?
- Genetic predisposition of some people
- Taking incorrect doses of antibiotics to cure diseases
- Using antibiotics in livestock farming
- Multiple chronic diseases in some people
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 and 2
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1, 3 and 4
(d) 2, 3 and 4