Zia Ul Mustafa ¹ Tauqeer Hussain Mallhi ² Yusra Habib Khan ² Khezar Hayat ³ Muhammad Salman ^4*

• ¹ School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Science Malaysia, Pulau Pinang, Penang, Malaysia
• ² Jouf University, Sakakah, Al Jawf, Saudi Arabia
• ³ University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
• ⁴ Department of Pharmacy Practice, Institute of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Allied Health Sciences, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is among the top ten global health threats compromising healthcare delivery systems due to associated morbidity, mortality and economic loss [1]. It is estimated that 1.14 million deaths (95% uncertainty interval: 1.00-1.28 million) were attributed to bacterial AMR in 2021 [2]. Irrational antimicrobial agents' use is one of the key contributors to the development of AMR and the highest mortality and economic burden associated with AMR has been seen in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) [2,3].COVID-19 pandemic is arguably the most devastating health crisis faced by humanity since the influenza pandemic in 1918 [4,5]. The disease has claimed the life of millions of people since its emergence in late 2019 [6]. At the start of pandemic, several therapeutics modalities were used to manage COVID-19 patients (e.g. symptomatic treatment, drug repurposing, antivirals, convalescent plasma etc.) as there was no approved treatment or vaccine for the disease existed that time. In addition to the above-mentioned treatments, inappropriate antibiotics use was rampant amid COVID-19 pandemic, adding to the already prevalent issue of AMR, a pandemic within a pandemic. Consequently, our research topic delves into the main drivers of AMR during and after COVID-19 pandemic. This articles' collection can help highlight various factors contributing to AMR, thus helping heath authorities to devise further strategies to counter the threat of AMR. We are grateful to all the contributors to our research topic. This collection includes a total of eight articles. ( 1 Overall, the article featured in this research topic underscores the crucial importance of judicious use of antimicrobial agents and overcoming the barriers to implementing AMS to combat AMR.We are deeply grateful to all the authors for their valuable contributions to this critical topic.Additionally, we extend our thanks to the reviewers for dedicating their time to evaluate and enhance the research articles. We hope the content published in our special issue significantly contributes to global efforts in tackling antimicrobial resistance.