Role of Vaccines in Reducing AMR

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant global threat, weakening the effectiveness of antibiotics and increasing morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs due to various infections. Vaccines are a powerful, yet underused, tool to combat AMR by preventing infections, reducing antibiotic use, and limiting the spread of resistant bacteria. The vaccines achieve this through various mechanisms, including lowering infection rates, promoting herd immunity, decreasing bystander selection, preventing secondary bacterial infections, and slowing resistance development. Evidence from vaccines against pneumococcus, Hib, typhoid, rotavirus, and influenza shows notable declines in antibiotic prescriptions, treatment failures, and resistant infections. Global data suggest that expanding vaccine coverage, especially in low- and middle-income countries, could avert millions of antibiotic courses, hospitalisations, and deaths. Challenges such as serotype replacement, unequal coverage, and data gaps for certain pathogens remain. Future vaccines targeting high-burden resistant bacteria like Klebsiella, Group B Streptococcus, and extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) are promising. Incorporating vaccination into national AMR action plans, aligning it with antimicrobial stewardship, WASH, and infection prevention efforts, and prioritising AMR impact in investments are vital. Vaccination is a cost-effective, sustainable strategy that should be fully utilised within global efforts to combat AMR.