Hospital wastewater promotes antibiotic-resistant bacteria, study finds

Key Points:

• A Swedish study published in Nature Communications found that hospital wastewater promotes the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, potentially making hospital sewers hotspots for antimicrobial resistance.
• Researchers discovered that antibiotics excreted by patients enter hospital sewer systems, creating conditions that favor resistant E. coli strains, particularly to ciprofloxacin and cefotaxime, unlike municipal wastewater which showed no such effect.
• Bacteria growing on surfaces inside hospital sewer pipes were about three times more likely to be antibiotic-resistant compared to those in surrounding wastewater, with ciprofloxacin identified as a major contributor to this resistance.
• The study highlights the risk that resistant bacteria from hospital wastewater could reach people through contaminated water, especially during heavy rains when wastewater treatment plants may be overloaded.
• Proposed solutions include using alternative antibiotics less likely to promote resistance and treating hospital wastewater to remove antibiotics and harmful bacteria, though such treatments can be costly and complex.