Read the article and match the headings to the correct paragraphs.
Over the last century, antibiotics have radically changed the way we treat infections. They are an important tool for modern medicine, but unfortunately their misuse has led to the emergence of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics.
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The main origin of resistance to antibiotics is their misuse. As underlined by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) they are three main types of misuse: The unnecessary prescription of antibiotics for viral infections, against which they have no eff ect; The too frequent prescription of “broad-spectrum antibiotics”, in place of a better targeted antibiotic, through more precise diagnosis; The inadequate use by the patient, not respecting either dosage or duration of the treatment, which means that some of the bacteria may survive and become resistant.
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Some bacteria are naturally resistant to certain antibiotics, others can acquire resistance through mutations in some of their genes when they are exposed to an antibiotic. This resistance, natural or acquired, can spread to other bacterial species since bacteria can easily exchange genetic material from one to another, even if they are from diff erent species.
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Many of the available treatment options for common bacterial infections are becoming more and more ineffective. As a result, a growing number of infections — such as 14 pneumonia, tuberculosis and cystitis — are becoming harder to treat as the antibiotics used to treat them become less effective and it leads to higher medical costs, prolonged hospital stays, and increased mortality.
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Today antibiotic resistance is one of the major global problems. Without urgent actions, we are heading for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and routine operations could become fatal. Health experts from the World Health organization are calling to take steps at all levels of society to limit the spread of resistance. Most of them are quite easy to follow: we all are able to prevent infections by washing hands regularly, preparing food hygienically, avoiding close contact with sick people and keeping vaccinations up to date. Take antibiotics only when prescribed by a doctor. If you take it, always complete the full prescription, even if you feel better, because stopping treatment early promotes the growth of drug-resistant bacteria