Impact of Antimicrobial Resistance on UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 Targets in Lower-Middle Income Countries: A Scoping Review

Background: The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) are designed to be achieved by the year 2030, however, inadequate policies and lack of proper implementation of practices to control Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) has led to the failure of these SDG 3 targets. The targets and the control parameters align with each other as both pose the same challenges to the health sector by increasing morbidity and mortality and making sustainable development impossible. The aim of the study is to directly address the scope of literature available on the effect of AMR on UN SDG 3 targets. Methods: Free-access database with advanced search strategy for peer-reviewed literature and official websites are used to include six full-text publications following Cochrane guidelines for scoping review. The searches are conducted in January 2025; and results from 2015 to 2025 are considered. Results are filtered and extracted for relevant data, and was the identification and screening process was charted using a flow diagram. Results: A total of 543 results are identified from PubMed search, 3 from PubMed Advanced Search and 5 from organization websites. These are narrowed down after rigorous screening and filtration to include 6 publications in total, both from peer-reviewed journals and grey literature. The comparison of SDG 3 targets with AMR shows eight targets (3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.6 ,3.7 ,3.8, and 3.B), are directly or indirectly impacted by AMR. The interface of AMR and SDG 3 targets presents overlapping challenges, calling for improved policies to curb AMR and encourage SDG 3 target related efforts. Conclusion: The scoping review sums up the extent and nature of available data on this aspect. This provides a comprehensive insight into the evidence of the current status of SDG 3 targets in relation to AMR, highlighting the need of further research and policy amendments.