Overuse of antibiotics in livestock is linked to growing drug resistance in humans who consume the agricultural products, said Su Ih-jen (蘇益仁), director of the National Health Research Institutes’ National Institute of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology, who called for more government attention on the matter.
Su made the remarks at an international seminar on infection control held on Saturday in Taipei by the Infection Control Society of Taiwan.
Su said that infection control involves reining in the use of both antibiotics for human use and those for animal use. While the hospitals in the nation have been putting great efforts into infection control, antibiotic use on farms continues to affect human health, because the amount of antibiotics used in agriculture is eight times greater than that for medical use, he said.
Taking Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as an example, which is a bacterium that is resistant to certain antibiotics, Su said that despite some hospitals having done their part for infection control, the resistance rate of MRSA in general is still as high as 70 percent.
According to Centers for Disease Control data, the MRSA resistance rate in the US ranges from 34 percent to 58 percent, while it is 26 percent to 28 percent in the EU and 35 percent to 38 percent in Latin America.
Su lauded Cathay General Hospital’s work in controlling the MRSA resistance rate, which is the lowest in the nation at 50 percent.
The reason the hospital can achieve this relatively better outcome lies in its executive having control over dealing with pharmaceutical companies, who often have special relationships with infectious disease specialists in the country, he said.
Many of the hospitals exhibiting the worst infection control outcomes are in Miaoli, Greater Taichung, Changhua and Greater Tainan, where physicians have close ties with pharmaceutical companies and frequently prescribe last-line antibiotics, Su said. He added that the prescription of last-line antibiotics leads to the emergence of antibiotic resistance, necessitating stronger drugs, resulting in a vicious circle.
Antibiotics used in agriculture contribute to drug resistance in humans as well, he said. For instance, antibiotics in fish increase drug resistance in humans if the fish is cooked and eaten.
Su said that to be well managed and consistent, policy on the use of antibiotics should in the hands of the Executive Yuan.
Hospitals, agriculture sectors and communities must also cooperate for effective infection control, Su added.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
RSS