Antibiotic Resistant Salmonella is a Growing Concern

According to scientists, researchers, and public health agencies, antibiotic resistance among a specific species of salmonella is a growing concern to those in the US and Canada. Between 2003 and 2013, researchers in Canada collected several samples from patients seeking medical attention for salmonella poisoning. Of the nearly 100 samples of the serotype Salmonella Kentucky, roughly 30% were found to be resistant to the most commonly prescribed antibiotics on the market, including ciprofloxacin. Given the lack of development for new antibiotics at the moment, the idea of salmonella that doesn’t respond to antibiotic treatment is troubling, especially in regards to the elderly, young children, and those with compromised immune systems. The antibiotic resistant Salmonella Kentucky has yet to be found in American or Canadian meat samples. Instead, almost all cases can be traced back to travel to an African country or contact with meat or other food brought back from places like Egypt or Morocco. Ciprofloxacin resistant strains of Salmonella have also been reported by European health agencies after travel to Africa. Given today’s global atmosphere, scientists worry that it won’t be long before antibiotic resistant Salmonella Kentucky makes its way throughout Europe, Canada and the US – or that other so-called superbugs will begin popping up all over the world. Once bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, and the drugs used to treat it are no longer effective, the medical community is faced with a quandary. How do you treat salmonella that simply refuses to be treated when you run out of antibiotics to try?