Vaccines reduce infections and antibiotic demand, limiting the emergence of resistance. Integrating vaccination efforts with AMR strategies in human and animal health can reduce antimicrobial residues in the environment and support healthier, more resilient populations.
Vaccines are one of the most effective, evidence-based public health interventions available. They are estimated to save over 4 million lives yearly and help prevent pandemics and enable people of all ages live longer, healthier lives. Immunisation has been a key global strategy to improve public health outcomes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where infectious diseases remain a major public health burden.Â
The relationship between vaccines and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is complex and multifaceted. By preventing infections, vaccines reduce both the demand for antibiotics and their inappropriate use in treating infections, and boost the economy. Reduced antibiotic use lowers the selective pressure that drives the emergence of resistant bacteria. This, in turn, helps mitigate the development and spread of AMR. Additionally, some vaccines target bacteria directly, further supporting the containment of AMR. Vaccines reduce the incidence of viral diseases that often cause the inappropriate use of antimicrobials.Â
Vaccines play a pivotal role in safeguarding global health and reducing infections that contribute to AMR across all One Health sectors. Despite these clear co-benefits, vaccination programmes and AMR strategies are rarely integrated, the full value of vaccines is underestimated, and the potential for synergistic development remains underutilised – ICARS is working to change that.Â
In human health, vaccines reduce infection rates, the need for antibiotics, and the risk of incorrect or unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions. In most LMICs, national immunization programmes are already well established, with dedicated staff, funding, and implementation systems. In contrast, National Action Plans for AMR are relatively new—often in their first or second phase—and usually lack dedicated financial resources. Because vaccines play a key role in addressing AMR, there is a need to build strong partnerships that help LMICs achieve dual benefits: preventing infections in general and specifically reducing drug-resistant infections through investments in immunization. There is a dire need to establish vaccination programmes in the animal sector, not only to benefit animal health but reduce potential spillover risks of infections and AMR to humans.Â
High vaccine coverage can also support herd immunity, limiting the spread of resistant strains through populations. In the Philippines, a project co-funded with the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) is working with local stakeholder to co-develop a framework for reducing antibiotic use via vaccination while raising awareness of vaccines as a tool to control AMR, improve vaccine uptake, and promote AMR prevention in LMICs. Â
In animals, vaccines prevent disease in livestock and fisheries, reducing the need for antibiotics used for treatment or growth promotion, and lowering the AMR risk in the food chain. Furthermore, vaccines support animal welfare and productivity, reducing economic dependence on antibiotics and enhancing the livelihood of farmers and the society at large. In Tanzania, a project is working to reduce antimicrobial use and AMR through tailored vaccination and biosecurity regimes in commercial poultry production. Â
In the environment, the reduction in antibiotic use because of infection prevention via vaccines means that less resistant genes are released into ecosystems, decreasing the selective pressure on environmental bacteria to develop and spread resistance. Fewer treated infections also mean less pharmaceutical waste in water, soil and sewage. Â
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