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45 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE & STEWARDSHIP WHO Ranks World's 12 Most Dangerous Superbugs By Mackenzie Bean T he World Health Organization identified 12 families of bacteria that serve as the greatest threats to human health. e agency expressed an urgent need for drugmakers to develop new anti- biotics to fight the bacterial threats, reports STAT. Here are six things to know. 1. e 12 bacteria on the list were chosen based on their level of drug resistance, the number of deaths they cause, the frequency with which they infect people outside of hospitals and the burden they place on healthcare systems, said Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, the WHO's assistant director-general for health systems and innovation. 2. e list groups bacteria into three categories — critical, high and medium — to identify the priority of need for new antibiotics. "Antibiotic resistance is growing and we are running out of treatment options. If we leave it to market forces alone, the new antibiotics we most urgently need are not going to be developed in time," Dr. Kieny told STAT. "e pipeline is practically dry." 3. e international team of experts who developed the list encouraged researchers and drugmakers to shi efforts toward developing antibiot- ics using Gram negative bacteria. Many drug companies try to create new antibiotics for Gram positive bacteria, possibly because they are easier and cheaper to develop, said Dr. Nicola Magrini, a scientist at the WHO's department of innovation, access and use of essential medicines. 4. ree families of bacteria hold a critical designation on the list: Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacteri- aceae. ese pathogens cause severe infections and high mortality in hospital patients, according to Dr. Kieny. While they are not as com- mon as other drug-resistant infections, they create large healthcare costs in terms of resources needed to treat infected patients and lives lost, according to the report. 5. Six strains of bacteria were listed as high priority for new antibi- otics: Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Helicobacter pylori, Campylobacter spp., Salmonellae and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. is group represents bacteria that cause a large amount of infections in normally healthy individuals, reports STAT. 6. e list names three final bacteria as a medium priority for new treat- ments: Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Shigel- la spp. ese bacteria are becoming increasingly resistant to available drugs, according to the report. n 1,200+ ATTENDEES FROM ACROSS THE NATION REGISTER BY SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 AND SAVE! KEYNOTES BY 24 TH ANNUAL MEETING: THE BUSINESS & OPERATIONS OF ASCS OCTOBER 26-28, 2017 SWISSOTEL | CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 190 SPEAKERS, INCLUDING 137+ SPEAKERS DIRECTLY FROM SURGERY CENTERS Register here at www.beckersasc.com/annual- ambulatory-surgery-centers-conference/ Call 800-417-2035 or email Jessica Cole at jcole@beckershealthcare.com or Scott Becker at sbecker@beckershealthcare.com The Best Business-Focused, Strategic Discussions in the ASC Industry with a Special AEU Credit Track BECKER'S ASC REVIEW Bill Walton, NBA Legend and Basketball Analyst Kirk Herbstreit, ESPN's "College GameDay" Analyst and Reporter Alexa von Tobel, Founder and CEO of Learnvest.com, Author of Financially Fearless Andrew Hayek, CEO of OptumHealth, CEO of Surgical Care Affiliates