Epidemiology of resistance to quinolones in Salmonella

Fluoroquinolones account for about 11% of antimicrobial prescriptions in hu man medicine worldwide and represent the drug of choice for the treatment o f a wide range of human infectious diseases. They were introduced into vete rinary medicine in Europe in the late 1980s and early 1990s and in the USA in 1995. Following their introduction, resistant strains of bacteria, inclu ding Salmonella, started to emerge. Resistance to quinolones depends on chr omosomal mutations and the subsequent spread of resistant clones. While the selective pressure caused by the use of quinolones facilitates their epide mic transmission, the resistant mutants may spread independently of quinolo ne use. In view of the key role of this group of antimicrobials in human me dicine and the position of Salmonella as the leading cause of food-borne in fections in many countries, the public health hazard posed by quinolone-res istant zoonotic Salmonella serovars has been a subject of concern. The fluo roquinolones are on the WHO list of drugs that should be reserved for human use. Considering the mounting evidence that quinolone-resistant zoonotic S almonella are the cause of severe, sometimes fatal, infections in humans, t he use of fluoroquinolones in food animals should be discontinued or severe ly restricted. Such an intervention should be accompanied by prudent use me asures involving all other groups of antimicrobials to reduce the need for fluoroquinolones in veterinary medicine.