On antibiotics—salvation or threat

The discovery of antibiotics is among the greatest breakthroughs in the 20th century. The first discoverers of these substances, winners of the Nobel Prize in Medicine, paved the way for the discovery and synthesis of many new analogs with similar effects.Unfortunately, the rapid and widespread introduction of antibiotics into treatment practice was followed by the equally rapid development of resistant strains of microorganisms. According to the latest WHO report (May 2024), the following are assessed as critical for practice: Acinetobacter baumannii and Enterobacterales—resistant to carbapenem, Enterobacterales—resistant to third-generation cephalosporins, Mycobacterium tuberculosis—resistant to rifampicin. Research indicates their widespread presence in both hospital and outpatient settings. Multidrug resistant bacteria (MDR) pose a significant burden for patients in intensive care units and a daily challenge for healthcare providers aiming to ensure effective treatment. The widespread use of antibiotics outside of human medicine raises global issues that require coordinated action measures. The adopted One Health strategy unites cooperation and communication between all organizations related to the assessment of public health risks and the development and implementation of complex impact measures.