EARS-Net is a European network of national surveillance systems that maintains a comprehensive surveillance and information system with European reference data on antimicrobial resistance for public health purposes.
EARS-Net is the largest publicly funded surveillance system for antimicrobial resistance in the European region.
The results contribute to greater public awareness and scientific understanding of antimicrobial resistance and its importance in public health.
Data collection and analysis
How are the data collected and processed?
Antimicrobial resistance in Europe is monitored by a network of national surveillance systems in the European countries.
The national networks systematically collect data from clinical laboratories in their own countries. At present these include 900 public-health laboratories serving over 1400 hospitals in Europe and providing services to an estimated population of 100 million European citizens.
The national networks upload the data to a central database maintained at ECDC (The European Surveillance System - TESSy). After uploading, each country approves its own data and the results are made available from the ECDC website.
In order to maintain and facilitate the data reporting, ECDC ensures:
- Validation of data from antimicrobial susceptibility tests of seven important bacteria pathogens isolated from patients with invasive infections;
- Analysis of trends in the occurrence of antimicrobial resistance over time and between different countries and regions;
- EQA and protocols on testing methods to improve the consistency and quality of the data;
What surveillance data are collected?
Since the program began in January 1999 the laboratories have collected antimicrobial resistance data on more than 400,000 invasive isolates.
EARS-Net performs surveillance of antimicrobial susceptibility of seven bacterial pathogens commonly causing infections in humans:
- Streptococcus pneumoniae
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Enterococcus faecalis
- Enterococcus faecium
- Escherichia coli
- Klebsiella pneumonia
- Pseudomonas auruginosa
EARS-Net also collects denominator data on laboratory/hospital activity and patient characterics.
For further details regarding EARS-Net data collection please refer to the EARS-Net reporting protocol 2010.
Publication of results
EARS-Net maintains an interactive database and publishes Annual reports. This constitutes an important source of information on antimicrobial resistance for policy makers, scientists, doctors and the public.
- Interactive database providing user friendly display of selected results in various downloadable formats, such as tables, figures, and maps;
- Annual reports with interpretations and conslusions regarding trends in the occurrence of antimicrobial resistance across Europe;
EARS-Net interactive Database
The main tool for displaying data from the EARS-Net is an interactive database accessible on this website, which allows the user to display selected results in various formats, such as tables, figures and maps.
Access to EARS-Net interactive database