Antimicrobials, commonly referred to as antibiotics, are drugs used to kill bacteria or inhibit their growth and spread. However, some bacteria are naturally present or have, over time, acquired mechanisms for defence, survival and multiplication, even in the presence of antibiotics.

Antibiotic resistance is a public health problem since it results in human and veterinary medicine having fewer, or less effective antibiotics available to treat microbial infections caused by pathogenic bacteria.

To find out more about antibiotic resistance, watch this video produced by the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe), an Italian health authority and research organization in the fields of animal health, food safety and zoonoses.