Kerala has become the first State in the country to bring out a district-level antibiogram, with Ernakulam district bringing out its profile of antimicrobial susceptibilities of various organisms.
Kerala, which has been pioneering antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance and activities to reduce AMR by formulating the Kerala Antimicrobial Resistance Strategic Action Plan (KARSAP), had been the first State to bring out its first antibiogram in 2022. An antibiogram is the clinical data summarising the profile of various bacterial pathogens and its susceptibility to antibiotics that are meant to treat them. Antibiograms help guide clinicians in selecting the best empiric antimicrobial treatment and are useful for monitoring trends in drug resistance. The antibiogram is an essential resource for health-care institutions to track changes in antimicrobial resistance and to guide empirical antimicrobial therapy.
In August last, the State had set up AMR committees in all 191 block panchayats with the aim of improving AMR literacy at the grassroots. It was through the AMR surveillance data collated from sentinel sites in the panchayats that Ernakulam was able to develop its first antibiogram.
