The long term shift of earth's climate pattern is caused mainly by man made activities that leave a dent on the protective ozone layer. Burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, rapid industrialization etc have led to release of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane into the atmosphere that traps the heat and causes global warming. These activities alter the global patterns of climate ranges from severe drought to heavy rainfall across the globe. These conditions have led to changes in precipitation patterns, altered ecosystem, rise in temperature and sea levels posing a threat to biodiversity.

Climate Change And Emerging Bacterial Infections

1. Changes in geographical distribution

Changes in weather patterns may favour the conditions that are essential for the pathogens like bacteria, virus, parasites to thrive. The life cycle of the pathogenic agents and the animal vectors that are responsible for transmission of diseases are largely modified by the change in geographical distribution such as changes in land cover and use.

Example: Dam construction in high rainfall areas can create a freshwater habitat that aids the growth of snails which ultimately carries a parasitic worm that causes schistosomiasis, Deforestation also causes various outbreaks of infectious diseases in the tropics.

2. Extreme weather events and sanitisation

The increased frequency of these extreme weather conditions such as rainfall, drought and snowfall potentially causes flooding, heat waves and hurricanes. These conditions in crowded cities lead to outburst of infrastructure, compromised sanitary conditions and the massive displacement of people from such areas may increase the risk of exposure to bacterial infections.

Example: Flooding can contaminate the water which causes waterborne diseases such as cholera, typhoid and leptospirosis.

3. Temperature changes and bacterial infections

Climate changes such as increased rainfall, increased global temperatures that cause melting of glaciers can aid in the emergence of novel infectious diseases. 

Example:  Mild winter and warmer temperatures maximise the population and wide spread of vectors such as mosquitoes and ticks that potentially carries the pathogen in it, causing malaria, dengue, lyme disease, tick disease and various other infections.

4. Impact on immunity

Extreme climatic conditions can pose a threat to the human immune system, making the body more vulnerable to various infections by affecting the normal immune responses. This condition makes the human body susceptible to increased risk of infections.

5. Antimicrobial resistance

The change in global climatic conditions such as increased humidity, lower temperatures may aid in growth, development and proliferation of various bacteria and pathogens. These conditions may cause mutations in the normally occurring bacteria and create a chance to develop a resistance against the medications that usually destroy and treat these bacterial infections. This can indirectly contribute to antimicrobial resistance of antibiotics.

Treatment against bacterial infections

The treatment plan involves employment of antibiotics that are medications used to eliminate the bacteria either by killing it entirely or inhibiting the growth . There are a variety of antibiotics available in the market that are classified according to the pathogen they act against, chemical structure and uses. Some of the antibiotic classes of medications include, penicillins, macrolides, tetracyclines, cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones,sulfonamides etc.

These antibiotic medicines are used to treat a variety of bacterial infections such as respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infections, bacterial sepsis, sexually transmitted diseases, gastrointestinal and skin infections.

A third generation cephalosporin antibiotic, cefixime is widely prescribed and effective against various bacterial infections that acts by blocking the synthesis of the bacterial cell wall and  kills the bacteria.

Conclusion

Global climate change poses a challenge to mankind such that it affects human health, alters the ecosystem and many more. The prevalence and emergence of  newer bacterial infections due to these conditions pose a threat to humanity and employment of antibiotics has become vital in managing these conditions.