Antibiotic Use and Antibiotic Resistance in France in 2018
To mark World Antibiotic Awareness Week and European Antibiotic Awareness Day, Santé publique France and its partners are releasing the 2018 data on antibiotic use and resistance.
Antibiotic resistance
thematic dossier
Antibiotic resistance renders one or more antibiotics ineffective against a bacterial infection. This phenomenon can make it difficult, or even impossible, to treat certain infections.
Antibiotic resistance: a major public health challenge
Antibiotic resistance is identified by the World Health Organization as one of the most serious threats to public health, on par with the ecological challenges of our time. It is linked to the use of antibiotics, which, over time, leads to increased bacterial resistance, ultimately threatening the effectiveness of these treatments.
Two strategies to combat antibiotic resistance:
Preventing infections and limiting the spread of bacteria and resistance genes
Using antibiotics wisely (the right ones, when needed).
Antibiotics and bacterial resistance: a global threat, individual consequences
Since 2016 in France, an interministerial roadmap for controlling antibiotic resistance has coordinated actions in human health, animal health, and the environment under a “One Health” approach. Each year, a summary is published by Santé publique France and its partners.
The 2019 edition of this summary updates the available information on antibiotic resistance and its prevention; this year, it includes an educational infographic that puts the global issue of antibiotic resistance and the associated individual risks into perspective.
infographie
4 December 2019
Antibiotic resistance: a global threat with individual consequences
rapport/synthèse
25 November 2020
Antibiotics and bacterial resistance: a global threat with individual consequences
Encouraging data on outpatient care
In human health, the data published by Santé publique France covers the three healthcare sectors (healthcare facilities, medical-social facilities, and outpatient care).
This year, the data on outpatient care is particularly detailed, thanks to the work of the Primo1 mission on resistance surveillance and new indicators of antibiotic use.
Overall antibiotic consumption is stabilizing
Encouraging results are observed: overall antibiotic consumption, expressed in defined daily doses (DDD), is stabilizing. Expressed in terms of the number of prescriptions, it decreased by 15% from 2009 to 2018. In terms of resistance and regarding Escherichia coli, the bacterium most frequently isolated in community laboratories, a decrease in resistance to third-generation cephalosporins is observed, both in community settings and in long-term care facilities.
Data on antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance in healthcare facilities (Spares2 project) are also available. The results of this study will be the subject of a separate report at a later date.
Key Figures for 2018
728 tons of antibiotics for human use and 471 tons of antibiotics for animal use were sold in France.
In human healthcare, 93% of antibiotics are dispensed in private practice and 7% in healthcare facilities; of those dispensed in private practice, 13% are based on a hospital prescription.
Consumption levels in human healthcare in France remain 30% above the European average (ECDC data).
It is therefore essential to continue promoting and expanding initiatives aimed at ensuring the appropriate use of antibiotics among all relevant stakeholders: the general public, patients, human and veterinary healthcare professionals, and policymakers.
Antibiotic use indicators available to everyone via Géodes
Indicators on antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance in urban areas and healthcare facilities are available via our Géodes platform (https://geodes.santepubliquefrance.fr/).
For the first time in 2019, to provide a more accurate picture of antibiotic use in the community, Santé Publique France is publishing, in addition to the standard indicator expressed in terms of daily defined doses (DDJ), a new indicator expressed in terms of the number of prescriptions. The two indicators published by Santé publique France (DDJ and prescriptions) have been produced for each year from 2009 to 2018. They are broken down by antibiotic class, by region (region and department), and by age group (8 in total).
The availability of these indicators allows for better monitoring and understanding of trends in antibiotic consumption in France through interactive visualization by region.
Indicators available via Géodes
Under “Pathology”:
Under “Determinants”:
Documents to download
Learn more
Santé publique France:
RéPias: Network for the Prevention of Healthcare-Associated Infections https://www.preventioninfection.fr/
ANSM: Thematic dossier “Using Antibiotics Properly”
ANSES:
Health Insurance: via a search using the term “Antibiotics,” https://www.ameli.fr
Inserm: thematic dossier “Antibiotic Resistance”
Ministry of Solidarity and Health: thematic dossier “Antibiotics: Essential Medicines to Preserve”
Ministry of Agriculture and Food: thematic dossier “Ecoantibio”
Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition: thematic dossier “Antibiotic Resistance”
1Primary Mission: Surveillance and prevention of antibiotic resistance and healthcare-associated infections in outpatient care and the medical-social sector, delegated to CPias Pays de la Loire and CPias Grand-Est
2Spares Mission: surveillance and prevention of antibiotic resistance in healthcare facilities, delegated to CPias Grand-Est and CPias Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
