A proposed analytic framework for determining the impact of an antimicrobial resistance intervention

What is it about?

We reviewed available methods for quantitatively describing antimicrobial drug use in food-producing animals on farms. We also reviewed available methods for quantitatively describing the trends and shifts in antimicrobial resistance in bacteria that can contaminate meat products from the animals. We proposed approaches for combining the drug use and resistance estimates in a manner that enables determining the strength of association of the drug use with the resistance in such bacteria.

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Why is it important?

Antimicrobial drug use in farm animals is thought to make a contribution to antimicrobial resistance in bacteria that infect people. Whether this contribution is significant relative to the contribution of antimicrobial drug use directly in people is unknown. In order to understand that, we first need to determine how strongly the drug use in the animals is associated with antimicrobial resistance in bacteria that can be transmitted from the animals to people via meat products. Our review outlines the methods that can be used to determine the association strength.