Researchers from the Geneva Hospital and the University of Geneva have carried out two analyses, detecting a “very worrying” number of children in sub-Saharan Africa who are carriers of superbugs or antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Both institutions have warned that multibacterial resistance has reached levels “extremely alarming” in that region, which registers the highest mortality rate in the world due to antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

To reach this conclusion, the researchers analyzed data from 122 published studies between 2005 and 2022 and analyzed more than 30,000 blood, urine and feces samples from children aged 0 to 18 years.

Based on these data, they focused on studying the presence of Escherichia coli and Klesiella strains, belonging to the Enterobacteriaceae family and responsible for the majority of infections in newborns in this region.

The first study concluded that 41% of the Escherichia coli bacteria and 85% of Klebsiella found in children’s blood were resistant to treatments normally used for treat serious childhood infections.

The Enterobacteriaceae analyzed showed very high resistance to ampicillin and gentamicin, first-line antibiotics recommended for sepsis, a severe inflammatory reaction that occurs after an infection and causes death among newborns.

The second study revealed that the risk of being a carrier of multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae is three times higher after having received antibiotic treatment three months earlier.

These data, the researchers warn, are very alarming and call for take urgent measures to manage this problem in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as improve hygiene to prevent the spread of these bacteria.