The fight against antibiotic resistance - the silent pandemic - is underway here

Uppsala University is coordinating a Vinnova-funded research project to counter the time bomb known as antibiotic resistance.

November 18th is World Antibiotic Awareness Day. A day to raise awareness of the importance of protecting antibiotics worldwide.

In Swedish hospitals, doctors encounter multi-resistant bacteria every day, it's everyday life. A common condition such as urinary tract infection is difficult to treat with antibiotics today due to resistance. An example of when resistance is a matter of life and death can be found at the Academic Hospital in Uppsala.

Ukrainian war victims receive help

Ukrainian citizens, adults and children, with severe burns from the ongoing war are being treated here. They bring multi-drug resistant bacteria with them from intensive care units around Europe where they were previously treated.
At Uppsala University Hospital, teams of specialists work together with these patients.

- We review available treatment options based on individual needs and conditions and ensure that the bacteria do not spread further within healthcare, says Thomas Tängdén, senior physician and associate professor at Academic Hospital and Uppsala University, and project manager for Platinea.

Thomas Tängdén, senior physician and associate professor at the Academic Hospital and Uppsala University, and project manager for Platinea.

The innovation environment Platinea, funded by Vinnova, was launched in 2016 with the aim of improving the availability and use of antibiotics. Today, the platform brings together 22 actors from academia, government, the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare.

Platinea has so far contributed to a national inventory of knowledge gaps in antibiotics, developed proposals to ensure access to functioning antibiotics and conducted clinical studies on how antibiotics should be used optimally.

In Swedish hospitals, doctors encounter multidrug-resistant bacteria every day. A common condition such as urinary tract infection is now difficult to treat with antibiotics.

Thomas Tängdén particularly highlights collaboration and new partnerships as key to the work.

- That is probably the biggest innovation – that we are now working together across sector boundaries in a completely different way than before. It creates the conditions for filling the gaps in the chain from research, development and access to antibiotics, says Thomas Tängdén.

Individualization a tricky issue

A major challenge in specialized care is that bacteria develop resistance at the same time as we have a shortage of new antibiotics. In clinical care, it is therefore a critical issue to work more with individual adaptation of antibiotic treatment to reduce the risk of resistance. This means both looking at the individual patient's conditions and studying the type of infection in question in order to tailor the treatment.

- We must ensure that the most seriously ill always receive treatment that is efficient, but we cannot give the same treatment to everyone. It should be responsible treatment, says Thomas Tängdén.

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Facts about antibiotic resistance

• Antibiotic resistance means that bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics, which makes treatment less efficient or completely ineffective.
• Resistance develops naturally, but overuse and misuse of antibiotics accelerates the process.
• Consequences: Common infections can become life-threatening, surgery and cancer treatment risk becoming dangerous without effective antibiotics.
• Globally, it is estimated that 1.27 million deaths are directly caused by antibiotic resistance (2019, source: WHO/Lancet).

Learn more about the work against antibiotic resistance

About antibiotic resistance on the Platinea platform.

World AMR Awareness Week 2025