What are biocides and how widely are they used?
Bacteria can be killed or inhibited by different antimicrobial products, namely antibiotics that act against infections in humans or animals and biocides such as disinfectants, antiseptics and preservatives. According to the Biocides Directive (98/8/EC), biocidal products are intended to destroy, render harmless, prevent the action of, or otherwise exert a controlling effect on any harmful organism by chemical or biological means. The 23 product types covered by the directive range from drinking water disinfectants, through wood preservatives and insecticides, to antifouling products (see full table). Table: 23 Biocidal products listed in Annex V of the Biocides Directive (98/8/EC) Only biocidal products that act against bacteria are the focus of this assessment and not biocides used to control other micro-organisms such as fungi, protozoans, plants or other animals. More…
The SCENIHR opinion states: 3. SCIENTIFIC RATIONALE 3.1. Introduction During the last decade, antibiotic resistance by various mechanisms has increased worldwide in bacterial pathogens leading to treatment failures in human and animal infectious diseases ([European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System] EARSS 2005, Harbarth and Samore 2005, WHO 2007). Resistance against antibiotics by pathogenic bacteria is a major concern in the anti-infective therapy of both humans and animals. Bacteria are able to adapt rapidly to new environmental conditions such as the presence of antimicrobial molecules and, as a consequence, resistance increases with the antimicrobial use (Falagas and Bliziotis 2007, Jansen et al. 2006). Serious concerns about bacterial drug resistance from nosocomial, community-acquired and food-borne pathogens have been growing for a number of years and have been raised at both national and international levels (see Reports from EARSS 2005 [European Academies Science Ad
