Chennai: Intensivists have raised fresh concerns over the growing burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Intensive Care Units (ICUs), warning that shrinking antibiotic effectiveness is complicating the management of life-threatening infections and narrowing treatment options across India.
At Criticare 2026, organised by the Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine (ISCCM), experts called for urgent strengthening of antimicrobial stewardship, improved infection-control practices, and nationwide awareness to curb irrational antibiotic use.
Speaking at a press briefing, Dr Srinivas Samavedam, President, ISCCM, highlighted the growing role of data-driven care. He noted that advances in data science and artificial intelligence could help clinicians tailor therapies more precisely, improving outcomes while reducing unnecessary antimicrobial exposure.
Experts stressed that indiscriminate antibiotic use remains a key driver of resistance. Dr Sachin Gupta, General Secretary, ISCCM, said clinicians must carefully determine whether fever in ICU patients is truly infection-related before initiating antibiotics.
“Assuming every fever requires antibiotics leads to overuse and fuels resistance. We must identify the underlying cause, confirm infection, and prescribe targeted therapy for a defined duration,” he said.
Adding to the concern, Prof Pradip Kumar Bhattacharya, Immediate Past President, ISCCM, pointed out that many patients referred from smaller hospitals already arrive with resistant infections, often after receiving high-end broad-spectrum antibiotics prematurely.
“The infection-control standards followed in tertiary centres must percolate to smaller hospitals. Without uniform implementation of prevention protocols, the burden will continue to grow,” he said, warning that the pipeline of effective antibiotics is limited.
Leaders also underlined systemic gaps contributing to AMR, including over-the-counter access to antibiotics, inadequate diagnostic testing such as culture and sensitivity, and lack of awareness among both healthcare providers and the public.
ISCCM representatives emphasised a three-pronged response involving stronger diagnostics, clinician education, and public awareness to slow resistance trends. They also called for policy-level support to institutionalise antimicrobial stewardship programmes across healthcare settings, particularly in secondary and smaller hospitals where early misuse often begins.
With ICU infections becoming harder to treat and drug options dwindling, critical care specialists cautioned that AMR is no longer a future threat but an immediate clinical reality demanding coordinated national action.
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