Pets may be a source of drug-resistant bacteria, study suggests.

New research has found that healthy pets. Cats and dogs – may be a source of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs), or humans may be transferring them to their pets, according to the study. Guardian.

MDROs are bacteria that are resistant to drug treatment with more than one type of antibiotic. Bacteria slowly evolve and become stronger than the drug used to kill them.

According to an estimate, 1.3 million deaths were caused by drug-resistant bacteria, and about 5 million deaths worldwide in 2019 were linked to such evolving bacteria.

The research – which is due to be presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Copenhagen later this week – said the risk of cross-infection is low.

Dr Carolyn Heckman from the Charity University Hospital Berlin conducted the study on more than 2,800 hospitalized patients and their accompanying pets.

Pets that are too numerous. Such bacteria And microorganisms have become a serious concern worldwide. To conduct a study on this issue, researchers collected samples from hospitalized patients and their companion pets living in their homes.

In this study, the genetic sequencing method allowed the researchers to identify the genes that lead to drug resistance and 30% of the patients were identified as having such bacteria. The positivity rate was 9 percent among cat owners, while the rate was higher among dog owners at 11 percent.

Owners were asked to send in samples and in four of these cases, both pets and owners were found to have organisms of the same species with similar levels of drug resistance.

Discussing its prevalence, Hickman said: “Although the level of sharing between hospital patients and their pets in our study is very low, carriers can shed bacteria into their environment for months, and they “Can become a source of infection for other people. More vulnerable people in the hospital, such as those with weakened immune systems and the very young or elderly.”