The development of the era is inseparable from the opportunity for easy access to information via the internet, one of which is access to health information that can bring benefits or disadvantages.
People who use this access correctly can get benefits, but if they use the internet incorrectly, it can cause losses, such as improper use of drugs. The habit of using drugs, especially antibiotics, without a doctor's prescription can harm the body and can then cause antibiotic resistance, where there is immunity to antibiotics.
What is the meaning of Acinetobacter baumannii?
Acinetobacter baumannii is a gram-negative bacterium that can cause nosocomial infections in humans. This bacterium can grow at a temperature of 44 °C, uses various types of carbohydrates as a source of nutrition, and is able to adhere to human epithelial cells.
The characteristics of this bacterium are aerobic, cocco-bacilli-shaped, and can quickly become resistant to various antibiotics. This bacterium is known to colonize surgical, medical, maternity, and burn care units in a hospital and plays a role in acute infections such as meningitis, pneumonia, and bacteremia. Acinetobacter baumannii is also known to be resistant to conventional soaps and antiseptics so that contamination of this bacterial colony on the hands of health workers easily occurs.
According to WHO, antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites mutate over time and no longer respond to treatment, making infections more difficult to treat and increasing the risk of spreading diseases, including dangerous diseases, to death.
WHO has stated that antibiotic resistance is one of 10 global public health threats. The main cause of the development of bacteria that are resistant to treatment is the misuse and excessive use of antibiotics. The impact of antibiotic resistance on the economy is very significant. In addition to death and disability, prolonged illness results in longer hospitalizations, so that treatment needs are more expensive.
One of the bacteria that, if resistant, causes an increase in the burden of treatment is Acinetobacter baumannii. This bacteria can cause urinary tract infections, surgical site infections, bacteremia, pneumonia, and meningitis, especially in immunocompromised patients in intensive care units.
This gram-negative bacteria is the leading cause of medical care due to infection, and this bacteria is resistant to Carbapenem antibiotics, which is one of the global threats in the field of medicine. This Acinetobacter baumannii bacteria is one of the bacteria most often isolated in laboratory tests, and is known to be resistant to many types of antibiotics, and is a major cause of infections, especially pneumonia associated with ventilator use in hospitals.
Infection by Acinetobacter baumannii is on the WHO's first priority list of dangerous pathogens, this is related to the increasing clinical and economic burden, and resistance to many drugs, especially Carbapenems which are actually the last choice for treatment of this infection.
Is Acinetobacter baumannii bad?
A study on the comparison of treatment costs has been conducted on patients infected with Carbapenem-resistant and Carbapenem-sensitive Acinetobacter baumannii. The study was conducted at the Department of Microbiology, Dr. Soetomo Hospital, Surabaya, Indonesia during the period March 2018 to February 2021. The factors assessed were inpatient costs such as diagnostic costs and antibiotic costs.
Diagnostic costs include the costs of radiology and laboratory examinations such as Clinical Pathology, Anatomical Pathology, and Clinical Microbiology. If asked whether Acinetobacter baumannii is bad? then the answer is yes. Acinetobacter baumannii bacteria can be dangerous for some people, especially those with weakened immune systems:
a. Nosocomial infections
These bacteria can cause nosocomial infections in hospitals, such as meningitis, pneumonia, and bacteremia.
b. Antibiotic resistance
These bacteria can quickly become resistant to many antibiotics, including conventional soaps and antiseptics.
c. WHO priority pathogens
The WHO considers Acinetobacter Baumannii to be priority 1 (critical) on its list of priority pathogens for research and development of new antibiotics.
d. High incidence
These bacteria have a high incidence in people with compromised immune systems, especially those who have been hospitalized for a long time.
e. Pneumonia
Acinetobacter Baumannii can cause an uncommon but important form of pneumonia.
f. High mortality
Acinetobacter Baumannii pneumonia has a high mortality rate ranging from 40 to 64%. However, these bacteria are usually not harmful to healthy people.
Acinetobacter bacteria are difficult to control because they are transmitted through the air and survive in very damaged environments. Although the number of Carbapenem-sensitive bacteria is greater than that of Carbapenem-resistant bacteria, this remains a concern because Carbapenem is the most effective antibiotic for the treatment of Acinetobacter baumannii.
Unfortunately, Carbapenem resistance is increasingly widespread. As a result of this resistance, the disease will be more difficult to cure so that hospital treatment will be longer, which will cause hospital costs to increase when compared to the cost of treating patients who are sensitive to Carbapenem. In addition, inappropriate use of Carbapenem can also increase hospital costs.
In this study, Acinetobacter Baumannii infections that are resistant to Carbapenem antibiotic treatment cost higher diagnostic costs. Therefore, it is necessary to explore and regulate early diagnosis and identification of infectious organisms. Early treatment can ultimately help reduce the burden of additional hospital costs.
Control and prevention of antibiotic resistance need to be carried out by doctors and other health workers by preventing infections by maintaining sanitation, using antibiotics according to needs and guidelines, reporting incidents of drug-resistant infections, and educating patients about how to take antibiotics properly and the dangers of misuse.
Not only that, the general public also needs proper education about the use of drugs, so that they do not just buy them at the pharmacy and must be in accordance with a doctor's prescription. Maintaining hygiene is also no less important in preventing drug resistance, such as preparing food hygienically, following the "Five Keys to Safer Food" from WHO, namely:
- Maintaining cleanliness
- Separating raw and cooked foods
- Cooking thoroughly
- Keeping food at a safe temperature
- Using safe water and raw materials.
