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| Antibiotic resistance |
Antibiotics have transformed modern medicine. They help healthcare professionals treat serious bacterial infections and make procedures such as surgery, childbirth, cancer treatment and organ transplantation safer.
However, some bacteria are becoming increasingly difficult to treat because the antibiotics that previously controlled them are losing their effectiveness. This problem is called antibiotic resistance.
Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria develop the ability to survive medicines designed to kill them or stop their growth. The bacteria become resistant, not the person taking the medicine.
When resistant bacteria cause an infection, patients may require additional tests, longer hospital stays and more expensive medicines. In severe cases, few effective treatment options may remain.
Antibiotic resistance is part of the broader global health problem known as antimicrobial resistance, commonly abbreviated as AMR.
Key Facts About Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotic resistance can affect anyone, regardless of age or country.
Bacteria become resistant to antibiotics; the human body does not.
Antibiotics treat bacterial infections, not viral infections.
Misuse and overuse of antibiotics accelerate resistance.
Resistant infections can lead to prolonged illness, disability and death.
Poor sanitation and weak infection-control systems increase the spread of resistant bacteria.
Resistant organisms can move between humans, animals, food and the environment.
Preventing infections reduces the need for antibiotics.
Antibiotic resistance requires action from individuals, healthcare workers, governments, farmers and the pharmaceutical industry.
What Are Antibiotics?
Antibiotics are medicines used to prevent or treat certain infections caused by bacteria.
Some antibiotics kill bacteria directly, while others stop them from multiplying so that the immune system can control the infection.
Antibiotics may be used to treat bacterial conditions such as:
Some forms of pneumonia
Urinary tract infections
Bacterial meningitis
Sepsis
Tuberculosis
Certain sexually transmitted infections
Some skin and wound infections
Bacterial infections following surgery
However, antibiotics do not work against viruses.
They should not usually be taken for:
The common cold
Influenza
Most uncomplicated coughs
Most sore throats
Measles
Viral hepatitis
Yellow fever
Other viral infections
For example, yellow fever is caused by a virus transmitted through infected mosquitoes. Antibiotics cannot prevent or cure it.
A healthcare professional may need to examine a patient or request laboratory tests before deciding whether an antibiotic is necessary.
What Is Antibiotic Resistance?
Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in ways that allow them to survive exposure to an antibiotic.
Some bacteria possess natural characteristics that protect them from certain medicines. Others develop resistance through genetic mutations or by obtaining resistance genes from other bacteria.
When an antibiotic is used, susceptible bacteria may be killed while resistant bacteria survive. The resistant organisms can then multiply and spread to other people.
This does not mean that the patient’s body has become resistant to the medicine. It means that the bacteria causing the infection are no longer adequately controlled by that antibiotic.
Antibiotic Resistance and Antimicrobial Resistance
The terms antibiotic resistance and antimicrobial resistance are closely related, but they do not mean exactly the same thing.
Antibiotic resistance refers specifically to bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics.
Antimicrobial resistance is broader. It includes resistance involving:
Bacteria and antibiotics
Viruses and antiviral medicines
Fungi and antifungal medicines
Parasites and antiparasitic medicines
Antibiotic resistance is therefore one important part of the wider antimicrobial-resistance problem.
How Serious Is Antibiotic Resistance?
Antibiotic resistance is already affecting the treatment of common infections throughout the world.
Infections such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, gonorrhoea, bloodstream infections and urinary tract infections are becoming increasingly difficult to treat in some settings.
When the first recommended antibiotic no longer works, doctors may need to use more expensive medicines that are less available or have a greater risk of side effects.
Antibiotic resistance is particularly concerning in countries with limited diagnostic laboratories, weak health systems, poor sanitation and uncontrolled access to antibiotics.
Africa carries a substantial burden because many communities face both inadequate access to effective antibiotics and inappropriate antibiotic use.
The goal should therefore not be to stop all antibiotic use. It should be to ensure that people receive the right antibiotic, for the right infection, at the right dose and for the correct duration.
What Causes Antibiotic Resistance?
Antibiotic resistance is a natural biological process, but human actions are accelerating it.
1. Taking antibiotics when they are not needed
Using antibiotics for viral infections exposes bacteria in the body to the medicine without providing any real treatment benefit.
This unnecessary exposure creates opportunities for resistant bacteria to survive and multiply.
2. Self-medication
Buying and taking antibiotics without appropriate medical assessment can lead to:
Use of the wrong antibiotic
Incorrect dosage
Unnecessary treatment
Harmful medicine interactions
Delayed diagnosis
Increased resistance
Fever does not automatically mean that a person needs antibiotics. Fever may be caused by malaria, viral infections, bacterial infections and many other conditions.
3. Incorrect dosage or duration
Antibiotics should be taken according to the instructions provided by a qualified healthcare professional.
Patients should not independently increase, reduce, extend or shorten treatment.
The correct duration depends on the infection, the antibiotic used and the patient’s health condition.
4. Sharing antibiotics
An antibiotic prescribed for one person may be unsuitable or dangerous for someone else.
Similar symptoms do not necessarily mean that two people have the same infection.
5. Using leftover antibiotics
Leftover antibiotics may be expired, incomplete or inappropriate for a new illness.
Using leftover medicine can delay proper diagnosis and expose bacteria to inadequate treatment.
6. Inappropriate use in animals
Antibiotics are used in veterinary medicine and animal production.
Unnecessary or poorly controlled use can contribute to resistant bacteria developing in animals. These organisms or their resistance genes may then spread through food, direct contact, animal waste, soil or contaminated water.
7. Poor infection prevention and control
Resistance spreads more easily where healthcare facilities and communities lack:
Proper hand hygiene
Clean water
Sanitation
Sterilisation
Environmental cleaning
Safe waste disposal
Appropriate isolation procedures
8. Inadequate laboratory services
Without proper testing, healthcare workers may have to prescribe treatment based mainly on symptoms.
This may result in unnecessary broad-spectrum antibiotic use or treatment with a medicine that does not work against the infection.
9. Poor-quality and falsified medicines
Medicines containing inadequate active ingredients may fail to treat infections properly and may contribute to resistance.
10. Environmental contamination
Antibiotic residues and resistant organisms may enter the environment through:
Hospital wastewater
Pharmaceutical manufacturing waste
Household disposal
Animal waste
Agricultural runoff
Open drains
Environmental protection is therefore an important part of controlling antimicrobial resistance.
How Resistant Bacteria Spread
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria can spread through:
Unwashed hands
Contaminated food or water
Medical equipment
Poorly cleaned hospital surfaces
Sexual contact
Close contact between people
Contact with animals
International travel
Wastewater and environmental contamination
A person may carry resistant bacteria without showing symptoms and still transmit them to others.
This means antibiotic resistance does not only affect people who misuse antibiotics. Resistant infections can affect anyone.
Examples of Resistant Infections
Resistance has been reported in bacteria that cause:
Pneumonia
Tuberculosis
Bloodstream infections
Urinary tract infections
Gonorrhoea
Meningitis
Diarrhoeal illnesses
Wound infections
Infections following surgery
Some resistant infections remain treatable, but doctors may have to use more costly or less readily available medicines.
Why Antibiotic Resistance Is Dangerous
Treatment failure
A medicine that previously treated an infection successfully may no longer work.
This can allow the infection to worsen or spread.
Longer illness
Patients with resistant infections may remain ill and infectious for longer periods.
Longer hospital stays
Resistant infections may require extended admission, repeated investigations and specialist care.
Higher healthcare costs
Alternative antibiotics, laboratory tests and longer treatment periods can place a financial burden on patients, families and health systems.
Greater risk of complications and death
Delayed or ineffective treatment can increase the risk of sepsis, organ damage, disability and death.
Threats to modern medicine
Many medical procedures depend on effective antibiotics to prevent and treat bacterial infections.
Antibiotic resistance makes procedures such as the following more dangerous:
Caesarean sections
Major surgery
Cancer chemotherapy
Organ transplantation
Dialysis
Intensive care
Care of premature babies
Treatment of severe injuries
How Individuals Can Prevent Antibiotic Resistance
Use antibiotics only when properly prescribed
Do not take an antibiotic merely because it worked during a previous illness or because a friend recommended it.
Seek care from a qualified healthcare professional.
Do not demand antibiotics
A healthcare professional may decide that an illness is caused by a virus or will improve without antibiotics.
Not receiving an antibiotic does not necessarily mean that the patient has received poor care.
For example, antibiotics cannot treat yellow fever and other viral infections.
Follow the prescription exactly
Take the correct dose at the recommended time and for the prescribed duration.
Do not independently stop, extend or repeat treatment.
Contact the prescriber or pharmacist when instructions are unclear or side effects develop.
Do not share antibiotics
Never give prescribed antibiotics to another person, even when their symptoms appear similar.
Do not use leftover antibiotics
Leftover antibiotics may be unsuitable or insufficient for a new infection.
Ask a pharmacist or appropriate health authority how unwanted medicines should be disposed of safely.
Do not flush antibiotics into toilets or pour them into open drains.
Prevent infections
Preventing infections reduces the need to use antibiotics.
Useful measures include:
Washing hands regularly
Preparing food hygienically
Drinking safe water
Using clean toilets
Practising safer sex
Keeping wounds clean
Covering coughs and sneezes
Staying home when medically advised
Receiving recommended vaccinations
Vaccination prevents illnesses that may otherwise require treatment and can reduce inappropriate antibiotic use.
Parents and caregivers can consult AnjKreb’s guide to the routine immunisation schedule in Nigeria to understand when important childhood vaccines should be given.
The Role of Vaccination
Vaccines do not reverse antibiotic resistance that has already developed.
However, they help reduce the number of infections in a population and therefore reduce the need for antimicrobial medicines.
Vaccination helps by:
Preventing bacterial infections
Preventing viral infections that may be wrongly treated with antibiotics
Reducing transmission within communities
Lowering hospital admissions
Protecting vulnerable people
Reducing opportunities for resistant organisms to spread
Yellow fever is an example of a disease that should be prevented through vaccination and mosquito control rather than antibiotic use.
Read more about yellow fever symptoms, transmission, treatment and vaccination.
Responsibilities of Healthcare Professionals
Healthcare professionals can help control antibiotic resistance by:
Following current treatment guidelines
Confirming whether an antibiotic is necessary
Collecting appropriate laboratory samples
Using antimicrobial-susceptibility results
Selecting the narrowest effective antibiotic when appropriate
Prescribing the correct dose and duration
Reviewing treatment after test results become available
Educating patients
Reporting resistant infections
Practising proper hand hygiene
Cleaning and sterilising equipment
Following infection-prevention procedures
Participating in antimicrobial-stewardship programmes
Antimicrobial stewardship refers to coordinated efforts to improve the selection, prescription and monitoring of antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines.
Responsibilities of Pharmacists and Medicine Vendors
Pharmacists and authorised medicine sellers should:
Dispense antibiotics according to professional standards
Discourage self-medication
Explain dosing instructions clearly
Check for allergies and medicine interactions
Encourage appropriate medical assessment
Avoid selling incomplete quantities
Promote safe storage and disposal
Report suspected falsified or poor-quality medicines
Responsibilities of Hospitals and Health Facilities
Healthcare facilities should:
Establish antimicrobial-stewardship teams
Maintain reliable microbiology laboratories
Monitor resistance patterns
Develop treatment guidelines
Strengthen hand hygiene
Ensure access to clean water and sanitation
Prevent healthcare-associated infections
Track antibiotic prescribing
Train healthcare workers
Report priority resistant organisms
Responsibilities of Policymakers
Governments and policymakers should:
Develop and finance national AMR action plans
Regulate antibiotic sales and distribution
Strengthen laboratory networks
Improve surveillance
Expand water and sanitation services
Support infection-prevention programmes
Ensure access to quality medicines
Control falsified and substandard products
Promote responsible prescribing
Improve vaccination coverage
Regulate pharmaceutical waste
Support research
Coordinate human, animal and environmental health sectors
Improving vaccination coverage reduces preventable disease and lowers unnecessary demand for antibiotics.
Parents can review the recommended immunisation schedule in Nigeria for information on important childhood vaccines.
Responsibilities of the Agricultural Sector
The agriculture and animal-health sectors can help by:
Using antibiotics under veterinary supervision
Avoiding unnecessary routine antibiotic use
Not using medically important antibiotics simply to promote growth
Vaccinating animals
Improving animal housing and nutrition
Strengthening farm hygiene and biosecurity
Reducing overcrowding
Monitoring antibiotic consumption
Testing suspected infections
Protecting water sources from animal waste
Improving food-production practices
Preventing diseases in animals reduces the need for antibiotics.
Responsibilities of the Pharmaceutical Industry
The pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries have important roles in:
Developing new antibiotics
Producing rapid diagnostic tests
Supporting vaccine research
Improving infection-prevention products
Ensuring responsible manufacturing
Controlling antibiotic waste
Maintaining medicine quality
Supporting affordable access to essential treatments
New antibiotics alone will not solve resistance.
Any new medicine may eventually lose effectiveness if it is misused. Prevention, diagnostics, surveillance and responsible prescribing must therefore accompany drug development.
What Is the One Health Approach?
The One Health approach recognises that human health, animal health and environmental health are interconnected.
Resistant organisms can move between people, animals, food, soil and water.
An effective response must therefore involve:
Human healthcare
Veterinary medicine
Agriculture
Food production
Environmental protection
Water and sanitation
Pharmaceutical manufacturing
Research and education
Focusing only on hospitals will not adequately control antimicrobial resistance.
Antibiotic Resistance in Nigeria
Nigeria faces several factors that can accelerate antibiotic resistance, including:
Easy access to antibiotics without proper assessment
Self-medication
Limited diagnostic testing
Weak laboratory capacity in some settings
Inappropriate prescribing
Poor infection-prevention systems
Limited access to clean water and sanitation
Substandard and falsified medicines
Antibiotic use in animal production
Poor medicine and healthcare-waste disposal
At the same time, some patients cannot access the antibiotics they genuinely need.
The correct response is therefore not simply to restrict every antibiotic. Nigeria must improve diagnosis, medicine quality, professional prescribing, infection prevention and equitable access to effective treatment.
Common Myths About Antibiotics
Myth 1: Antibiotics cure every infection
Fact: Antibiotics treat susceptible bacterial infections. They do not cure viral infections.
Myth 2: The body becomes resistant to antibiotics
Fact: Bacteria become resistant, not the human body.
Myth 3: A stronger antibiotic is always better
Fact: The best antibiotic is the one that is appropriate for the specific infection.
Myth 4: You can stop treatment immediately when you feel better
Fact: Follow the exact instructions provided by the prescriber. Do not independently shorten or extend treatment.
Myth 5: Leftover antibiotics can treat a similar illness
Fact: Similar symptoms may have different causes. The medicine may be incorrect, unsafe or insufficient.
Myth 6: Resistance only affects people who misuse antibiotics
Fact: Resistant bacteria can spread to other people, including those who have used antibiotics correctly.
Myth 7: Antibiotics can treat yellow fever
Fact: Yellow fever is caused by a virus. Prevention depends mainly on vaccination and mosquito control. Read AnjKreb’s guide to yellow fever disease and vaccination.
Questions to Ask Before Taking an Antibiotic
Patients may ask their healthcare professional:
Is this infection likely to be bacterial?
Do I need a laboratory test?
What is the name of the antibiotic?
What dose should I take?
How often should I take it?
For how many days?
Should I take it with food?
What side effects should I watch for?
Can it interact with my other medicines?
What should I do after missing a dose?
When should I return if I do not improve?
Patients should also disclose allergies, pregnancy, breastfeeding, kidney problems, liver problems and other medicines they are taking.
Warning Signs Requiring Medical Attention
Seek urgent medical care when an infection is accompanied by:
Difficulty breathing
Confusion
Persistent high fever
Severe weakness
Convulsions
Severe dehydration
Reduced urination
Persistent vomiting
Rapid deterioration
Unusual bleeding
Severe pain
Symptoms of sepsis
Serious symptoms in a newborn or young infant
Do not delay urgent medical attention while trying to select antibiotics at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between an antibiotic and an antimicrobial?
An antibiotic acts against bacteria. Antimicrobial is a broader term covering medicines used against bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites.
Can antibiotics treat malaria?
Most antibiotics do not cure malaria. Malaria is caused by parasites and requires appropriate testing and antimalarial treatment.
Do antibiotics treat typhoid fever?
Typhoid fever is caused by bacteria and may require antibiotics. However, proper medical assessment and reliable testing are important because resistance is increasing and other illnesses can cause similar symptoms.
Can I take antibiotics because I have a fever?
No. Fever can result from many conditions, including malaria, viral infections and bacterial infections. The cause should be investigated before treatment.
Can antibiotics treat yellow fever?
No. Yellow fever is caused by a virus and cannot be cured with antibiotics. Read more about yellow fever symptoms and prevention.
Can vaccination reduce antibiotic resistance?
Yes, indirectly. Vaccines prevent infections, reduce transmission and decrease the number of people who need antimicrobial treatment.
Parents can review the Nigeria immunisation schedule and vaccine guide.
Should I always complete an antibiotic treatment?
Take the medicine exactly as prescribed. Do not stop, extend or repeat it independently. Contact the prescriber if side effects occur or the instructions are unclear.
Will new antibiotics solve the problem?
New medicines are necessary but not sufficient. Resistance may develop against new antibiotics if they are misused. Infection prevention, vaccination, diagnostics, surveillance and responsible prescribing are equally important.
Conclusion
Antibiotic resistance threatens the ability to treat common bacterial infections and provide safe modern medical care.
The problem is accelerated by unnecessary antibiotic use, self-medication, poor infection control, inadequate sanitation, inappropriate use in animals and environmental contamination.
Everyone has a role to play.
Individuals should use antibiotics only under appropriate professional guidance. Healthcare workers should prescribe responsibly. Governments must regulate medicine access, strengthen laboratories and improve infection prevention. Agricultural, pharmaceutical and environmental authorities must also take action.
Antibiotics are valuable medicines. Using them correctly today will help preserve their effectiveness for future generations.
Last fact-checked and updated: July 2026
Related AnjKreb Articles
Yellow Fever: History, Symptoms, Transmission, Treatment and Prevention
Immunisation Schedule in Nigeria: Vaccines and When They Are Given
Medical Disclaimer
This article is provided for general health education and does not replace diagnosis, treatment or advice from a qualified healthcare professional. Do not start, stop or change an antibiotic without appropriate medical guidance.
About the Author
Adeyinka Joseph Alonge is a public health professional, researcher and writer with interests spanning health, science, technology, personal development and practical knowledge for everyday life.
Sources and Further Reading
World Health Organization: Antimicrobial resistance fact sheet
World Health Organization: Global Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance Report
World Health Organization: Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance
The Lancet: Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance
The Lancet Global Health: Antimicrobial resistance in the WHO African Region
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