Anna Levin

Metanalysis of 2012-2022 Data on Antibiotic Resistance in Mycoplasma Pneumonaie Across Geographic and Socioeconomic Factors

Started Mar. 28, 2022

Abstract or project description

Polygence Project Proposal Purpose: This project aims to assess the impact of geographic location, income per capita, Gini coefficient, and population density on the prevalence of Mycoplasma Pneumoniae macrolide resistance in cities located in North America, Europe, and East Asia. Hypothesis: As Mycoplasma Pneumonaie is a highly contagious respiratory pathogen, I anticipate that resistance will be more prevalent in areas with higher population density, as closer quarters can increase the risk of disease spread and the more infected persons there are, the higher the chance of mutation. I expect that resistance will be more prevalent in cities with higher Gini coefficients, as high income inequality often inhibits access to healthcare and personal protective equipment, increasing the risk of transmission and therefore mutation, of Mycoplasma Pneumoniae. Similarly, because poverty decreases access to healthcare, resistance will likely be more prevalent in cities with lower income per capita, as fewer healthcare resources and infrastructure are available in cities with less income, increasing the risk of mutation. Finally, I believe that geographic location (grouped into the four categories mentioned into the hypothesis) will in many ways represent a summation of the other variables tested in this analysis, and could be impacted by variables not analyzed, such as average daily temperature, but as indicated by previous data, I expect that East Asia will have the highest prevalence of Mycoplasma Pneumoniae macrolide resistance. Methodology: For this study, data will be compiled from numerous studies concerning the prevalence of Mycoplasma pneumoniae macrolide resistance. Inclusion criteria were the following: studies must derive data from a major city (or multiple non-conflated major cities), they must state a total percentage of resistant strains identified out of those tested (or otherwise provide data which can be used to derive such a conclusion), and they must utilize a broth dilution method to identify the extent of resistance to macrolides by any given strain. All studies must be from 2012 or later, (ten years prior to the year of writing). After this data is obtained, I will remove all studies that do not fit the above criteria, and place the rest into a spreadsheet, stating the city, total sample size, number of resistant strains (both to erythromycin and azithromycin) and level of resistance for each sample. I will then use this data to find a total percentage and level of resistance for each city, and then will compare this data to census data on population density, income per capita, Gini coefficient and geographic location to find the impact of each of the above variables on the prevalence of resistance.