Prescribing veterinary antimicrobials: How do we make the right decisions?*

Prescribing veterinary antimicrobials: How do we make the right decisions?

Antimicrobial resistance is a rapidly developing problem in both the human and veterinary fields. The development of new agents is slow and it is clear that careful stewardship and rational prescribing of antimicrobial agents is going to be key in slowing the rate of bacterial resistance over the forthcoming decades. This article reviews the mechanisms by which antimicrobial resistance occurs and how we can optimise our therapy to be as effective as possible, limiting selection pressure for drug resistance to occur.