Critical Reviews in Oral Biology & Medicine, Vol 9, 522-540, Copyright © 1998 by International & American Associations for Dental Research
Antibiotic resistance in oral/respiratory bacteria
M. C. Roberts
Department of Pathobiology, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle 98195-7238, USA.
In the last 20 years, changes in world technology have occurred which have
allowed for the rapid transport of people, food, and goods. Unfortunately,
antibiotic residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria have been transported
as well. Over the past 20 years, the rise in antibiotic-resistant gene
carriage in virtually every species of bacteria, not just oral/respiratory
bacteria, has been documented. In this review, the main mechanisms of
resistance to the important antibiotics used for treatment of disease
caused by oral/respiratory bacteria--including beta-lactams, tetracycline,
and metronidazole--are discussed in detail. Mechanisms of resistance for
macrolides, lincosamides, streptogramins, trimethoprim, sulfonamides,
aminoglycosides, and chloramphenicol are also discussed, along with the
possible role that mercury resistance may play in the bacterial ecology.
