The devastation wrought by bacterial infection in the preantibiotic era is perhaps best exemplified by the First World War. Bacterial infection in soldiers was high because of soil-contaminated shrapnel and shells. As a result, many soldiers lost life and limb. If antibiotics had been available, many may have lived. The pioneering work of Sir Alexander Fleming on the battlefields led to his discovery of penicillin which revolutionised the treatment of bacterial infections and supports so much of modern medicine.
Copyright© Authors.