The Superbug Threat

Superbugs are generally, various disease causing bacteria that develop a resistance to drugs normally used to control or eradicate them. In recent decades, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has developed faster than the production of new antibiotics, making bacterial infections increasingly difficult to treat. Scientists worry that a particularly virulent and deadly "superbug" could one day join the ranks of existing untreatable bacteria, causing a public health catastrophe comparable with the Black Death. With the emergence of super bugs, even common infections can be harder to treat because some bacteria are resistant to many antibiotics. Immunocompromised people in hospitals are at the highest risk. Some antibiotics may produce serious side effects.