New metric aims to simplify how global resistance is measured

In a study published in BMJ Global Health,researchers from the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy (CDDEP) calculated the Drug Resistance Index (DRI)—which combines measurements of antibiotic consumption and resistance across several disease-causing pathogens—for 41 countries. The results showed that use and resistance rates were highly variable across countries but that DRIs were generally correlated with income levels, with high-income countries such as Sweden, Canada, and Norway having the lowest DRIs and India, Thailand, and Ecuador the highest.