Antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly leaving children vulnerable to common infections, global study finds

Frequent antibiotic use is often a medically necessary, life-saving treatment for patients such as Harry Booth but using the same antibiotic too much can also make bacteria resistant to it. Photograph: supplied

Harry Booth has had a rough run through Australia’s coldest months. The 13-year-old has been in and out of hospital with a range of common chest and urinary tract infections that his doctors found challenging to treat.

Harry was born with kidney failure and began dialysis at six months old, before receiving a kidney transplant from his father at age four. The surgery saved his life but comes with a trade-off: he now needs to take medications that suppress his immune system to prevent his body from rejecting the kidney.