An Emerging Multidrug-Resistant Pathogen: Streptococcus pneumoniae

Abstract

Streptococcus pneumoniae ( S. pneumoniae ) has a multifaceted bond with its human host and causing several diseases in children and adults when host flexible immunity and bacterial acquisition factors allow them to invade essentially sterile spots, such as the middle ear spaces (causes otitis media), lungs (causes pneumo-nia), bloodstream (causes sepsis) and meninges (causes meningitis). In the early 1940s, management of pneumococcal infections used to be somewhat straightfor-ward, and penicillin commonly was the antibiotic of choice. Soon after mainstreaming antibiotic usage, worldwide emergence of antibiotic resistance among S. pneumoniae isolates has changed this approach. Multiple factors, like prior antibiotic use, inappropriate usage of antibiotics especially in young age, and day care attendance are the most commonly identified risk features for the spread of penicillin resistance and other multiple-antibiotic resistance. Basic fundamental mechanisms of most pneumococcal resistances have been identified, several orga-nizations like WHO, CDC, BSAC, EUCAST started campaigns for appropriate antibiotic use and also the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have been recommended to limit the further emergence and spread of pneumococcal resistant.