Antibiotic-resistant infections rose in the South West from 2022 to 2023, new data shows.

National surveillance data published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) revealed an increase from 22.8 to 25.9 per 100,000.

Despite this increase, the South West still reported the lowest antimicrobial resistance (AMR) burden among English regions.

The 2023 rate represents 1,491 life-threatening, resistant bacteraemias - bacterial bloodstream infections.

Out of a total of 8,699 bacteraemias in the South West in 2023, 17 per cent were caused by bacteria resistant to one or more antibiotics from a defined group.

Nationally, the burden of resistant infections rose by 3.5 per cent between 2019 and 2023.

There were an estimated 66,730 serious antibiotic-resistant infections in 2023, compared to 57,871 in 2022 and 62,314 in 2019.

Dr Chaam Klinger, consultant in health protection from UKHSA South West, said: "Antibiotics are essential to treat serious bacterial infections, such as meningitis, pneumonia, and sepsis but inappropriate use or overuse will mean they stop working against life-threatening conditions.

"Increasingly the first antibiotics that patients receive aren’t effective at tackling their infections.

"That’s not just an inconvenience - it means they are at greater risk of developing a severe infection and sepsis."

The English Surveillance of Antibiotic Prescribing and Utilisation Report shows the majority of antibiotic-resistant bloodstream infections in the last five years were caused by E. coli – a common cause of urinary tract infections, diarrhoea, vomiting, and fever.

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria of any kind are less likely to respond to treatment, causing serious complications, including bloodstream infections, sepsis, and hospitalisation.

Antibiotic resistance occurs naturally but managing antibiotic consumption and only using them when appropriate is essential to limiting the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria and associated deaths related to these infections.

Nationally, total antibiotic consumption was 17.6 defined daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants per day in England in 2023, an increase of 2.4 per cent in 2023 compared with antibiotic consumption in 2022.

Minister for public health and prevention, Andrew Gwynne, said: "This report lays bare the devastating impact of AMR in the UK and around the world.

"This is an urgent global threat and one we are tackling through our ambitious AMR national action plan.

"It is clear this emergency cannot be tackled by one nation alone - that is why we are working tirelessly with partners to implement the commitments made by global leaders on AMR at this year's United Nations General Assembly."