‘Smart’ GP prescribing could help curb a dramatic rise in costs for UTI care to more than $1 billion a year, according to a new Australian report on antimicrobial resistance.

The research by the Outbreak consortium — a multi-institutional initiative to tackle antimicrobial resistance led by the University of Technology Sydney — is the first to comprehensively track the economic cost of antimicrobial resistance in Australia.

Using real world data from the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District (ISLHD) in NSW, where resistance to first-line antibiotics sits at about 21%, and national health data, the researchers calculated the cost to the health system currently sat at $909 million per year.

They also found that antimicrobial resistance to first-line treatments prescribed by GPs was a major driver for hospital admissions due to complications.