Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major public health issue that has a significant impact on human and animal health, as well as food safety in West Africa. The use of antibiotics in farm animals, particularly when administered incorrectly or inappropriately, is a significant factor contributing to the emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In some West African countries, cattle farming provides a livelihood for around one million producers and households, and contributes between 71 million and 115 million to the national economy. These are of paramount importance, as they play a vital role in food security, income generation and the preservation of cultural traditions. However, the use of antibiotics in agriculture is not subject to rigorous monitoring. Scientific knowledges in this field in West Africa are from two main types of studies. A number of surveys have been conducted to determine antibiotic use (AMU), including the type of antibiotic used, the frequency of its application, the indication for its use, and the species to which it is administered. As part of scientific research, other laboratory studies have been conducted to assess the ability of bacteria to resist various antibiotics using standardised testing procedures. Despite the existence of this data, few analyses have established a correlation between antibiotics used in farms and those subjected to rigorous laboratory testing. This complicates the determination of the relationship between antibiotic use and our monitoring of AMR. This can therefore lead to misperceptions about the real extent of the risk of resistance. The objective of this systematic review is to analyse the correlation between antibiotics administered in livestock farming systems and those that have been evaluated in laboratories as part of research on resistance surveillance in farm in West Africa.
Soma et al. (Thu,) studied this question.