A group of German doctors have warned of a bacteria that has developed particular resistance to antibiotics and is another serious problem for the wounded at the front in Ukraine. Many of them are recovering in European institutions.

“The wounded often do not receive optimal surgical and antibiotic treatment,” said Maria Virginia dos Santos of the Charite-Berlin Medical University Hospital, one of the Western hospitals that has treated hundreds of wounded since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Between March and December last year, 47 patients from Ukraine were treated at the Center for Musculoskeletal Surgery at the Charite-Berlin Medical University.

Doctors carefully analyzed bone and soft tissue infections in 13 civilians and one soldier, six of whom were wounded by bullets and eight by grenade and bomb explosions that were taken to Germany. The results have caused alarm. “Polymicrobial infections caused by a combination of bacteria, fungi and parasites make it extremely difficult to treat wounds,” the doctor said Tuesday at the European Conference on Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Copenhagen.

Of the 14 patients, 10 were male and 4 were female, including three minors, the youngest of whom was 14 years old. The oldest was 64 years old. Most of the infections were in bones, soft tissues, and septic arthritis. The biggest problems were with the lower extremities.

Of the total infections identified, 13 were caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria, as well as other pathogens such as staphylococci, enterococci and fungi. Of the 25 bacteria, almost three-quarters (72%) were resistant to new antibiotics, which are used as a last resort when an infection is not cleared up with other drugs. This is why these pathogens are often referred to as “superbugs”.

“In Germany, we have encountered a whole range of new pathogens,” Dos Santos explained. “In these wounds, we see superbugs, and in all cases, these are polymicrobial infections.”

The conclusions of the German doctors are consistent with studies conducted in other military conflicts, such as in Iraq. The large number of wounded and limited resources to treat them can lead to the indiscriminate use of antibiotics, which is not always appropriate. This, in turn, can lead to high levels of antimicrobial resistance in bacteria, the negative impact of which on global health extends far beyond the battlefield.

According to El Pais