National surveillance data published by the UK Health Security Agency show that in 2024 an average of nearly 400 new antibiotic‑resistant infections are reported each week. Bacteraemia cases linked to resistant bacteria rose 9.3 % from 18,740 in 2023 to 20,484 in 2024, while deaths associated with resistant infections increased from 2,041 to 2,379, a rise of 338. The English surveillance programme for antimicrobial utilisation and resistance (ESPAUR) indicates that 65 % of the most recent six years of resistant bloodstream infections were caused by *E. coli*. Between 2019 and 2024 NHS primary‑care antibiotic use fell slightly, from 14.21 to 13.96 defined daily doses per 1,000 people, but private dispensing in community pharmacies nearly doubled, raising overall primary‑care prescribing by 0.27 %. In 2024, 4.5 % of primary‑care antibiotics were dispensed privately. The data also reveal a widening gap in resistant bacteraemia rates between the most and least deprived communities, with the former 47.2 % higher.
© Crown copyright, 2024, GOV.UK.
Summary adapted from content licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
For details, see https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/.
Original source: https://www.gov.uk/
Made by AI. If you spot anything of concern write us at contact@cybach.com. We’ll promptly correct irregularities.