Think twice before you kiss your family pet. Scientists say that
household pets could be a source of antibiotic resistant bacteria.
AsianScientist
(Jun 19, 2014) - Dr.
Nigel French, Professor of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health at Massey
University, has cautioned that animal contact may cause the transmission of
antibiotic resistant infections to humans, explaining the need for research to
better understand the transmission and incidence of these infections among
humans.
Antimicrobial
resistance, a global health issue, may be partly attributable to the increasing
use of antibiotics on animals. According to Professor French, there is
particular concern over an increase in the incidence of two particular types of
antibiotic resistant bacteria in New Zealand that commonly cause urinary tract
infections.
Explaining
how animals may transmit these bacteria to humans, Professor French said that
the bacteria were found in most household pets and spread through fluids and
faeces.
“Animals
clean their backside by licking it, so they can get faecal contamination in
their mouth and then lick humans. That’s how the infection could be
transmitted,” said Professor French.
Recently
supported by a NZD$1.1m grant from the New Zealand Health Research Council,
Professor French’s 36-month long research collaboration will investigate this
potential problem imposed by pets to humans. The full title of his project
reads “Is the family pet a risk factor for multidrug resistant bacterial
infections?”
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