Despite drop in ciprofloxacin use, resistant E. coli rises

They found that the rate of a particularly virulent strain, ST1193, rose during the study period. Together with E. coli strain ST131-H30, these strains are the major causes of a global pandemic of multi-drug-resistant urinary tract infections among all women. If ST1193 makes its home in more people’s guts, the situation could lead to more urinary tract infections with this more virulent strain, regardless of the curbing of fluoroquinolones prescriptions.

Another strain with a troubling increase in the participant samples was ST69, known to more frequently cause urinary tract infections in children. The study findings suggest that scientists should prioritize discovering better ways to control drug-resistant E. coli’s ability to colonize the gut before it causes these infections, the authors wrote. They mentioned potential strategies for deploying probiotic bacteria and anti-bacterial viruses (bacteriophages).

Reference: Increase in the community circulation of ciprofloxacin-resistant Escherichia coli despite reduction in antibiotic prescriptions, Communications Medicine, DOI 10.1038/s43856-023-00337-2