What prompted the establishment of NARMS in 1996?

• A. Concerns over approval of fluoroquinolones in food animals
• B. Rising rates of bacterial contamination in water
• C. Emergence of antibiotic-resistant viruses
• D. Need for rapid diagnostic tools

Answer: (A)

A key question here is why we set up a national system to monitor antibiotic resistance in bacteria that affect people and come from animals and food. The driving force was concern that using fluoroquinolones in food animals could select for resistant strains of bacteria like Salmonella and Campylobacter, which people could contract and for which fluoroquinolones are often a first-line treatment. Fluoroquinolones are important medicines for human infections, so when resistance emerges in foodborne bacteria, it threatens treatment options.

In the mid-1990s, the FDA approved fluoroquinolones for use in poultry, which heightened worries about resistance spreading to humans. To track this risk and inform policy, a coordinated monitoring program was created in 1996—collecting data on resistance in enteric bacteria from humans, animals, and retail meat. This system provides early warning of shifts in resistance and helps guide regulatory decisions.

Other options don’t fit because they address issues like water contamination, viruses, or diagnostic tools, none of which were the triggers for establishing this surveillance system.