BACKGROUND Multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis in children is frequently associated with delayed diagnosis and treatment. There is limited evidence regarding the management and outcome of children with MDR-tuberculosis. METHODS All children <15 years of age with a diagnosis of culture-confirmed MDR-tuberculosis were included in this retrospective cohort study from 1 January 2003 to 31 Dece...

Dear Editor, Tuberculosis (TB) is responsible for a large portion of morbidity and mortality worldwide. According to WHO report, tuberculosis is responsible for at least 2 million deaths per year, so 90% of these occurring in developing countries. 1,2 Recently, it has been shown that multidrug-resistance (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) are the most important factors c...

BACKGROUND Diagnosis of drug resistance and timely initiation of multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis therapy are essential to reduce transmission and improve patient outcomes. We sought to determine whether implementation of the rapid MTBDRplus diagnostic shortened the time from specimen collection to patient MDR tuberculosis therapy initiation. METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort ...

Tuberculosis remains the most important communicable disease in the world. The World Health organization (WHO) estimates that one-third of the world’s population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Groups that are at high risk for tuberculosis infection include HIV-infected persons, immigrants from countries with high rates of tuberculosis, the homeless, health care professionals, intr...

Multi-drug resistant (MDR) tuberculosis is defined as disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis with resistance to at least two anti-tubercular drugs Isoniazid and Rifampicin. Recent surveillance data have revealed that prevalence of the drug resistant tuberculosis has risen to the highest rate ever recorded in the history. Drug resistant tuberculosis generally arises through the selection o...

SETTING Addis Ababa Tuberculosis Demonstration and Training Center, Ethiopia. OBJECTIVES To determine the pattern of drug resistance among re-treatment cases of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), to determine the risk factors associated with multi-drug resistant (MDR) TB, and to propose re-treatment regimens based on the patterns of susceptibility to first-line and alternative drugs. DESIGN One h...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the frequency of drug resistance profiles of multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) isolates of pulmonary tuberculosis patients, against both the first and the second line drugs. STUDY DESIGN An observational study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY The multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) ward of Ojha Institute of Chest Diseases (OICD), Karachi, from 1996 to 2006. ...

BACKGROUND Multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) are global health problems. We sought to determine the characteristics, prevalence, and relative frequency of transmission of MDR and XDR TB in Shanghai, one of the largest cities in Asia. METHODS TB is diagnosed in district TB hospitals in Shanghai, China. Drug susceptibility testing for first-line dr...

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) presents an increasing threat to global tuberculosis control. Many crucial management issues in MDR-TB treatment remain unanswered. We reviewed the existing scientific research on MDR-TB treatment, which consists entirely of retrospective cohort studies. Although direct comparisons of these studies are impossible, some insights can be gained: MDR-TB can...

This study evaluates the serum concentrations of rifampin (RMP), isoniazid (INH), and intestinal barrier function in patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), drug susceptible tuberculosis (DS-TB), and health volunteers (HC; controls). Peak serum concentrations of RMP were significantly lower in MDR-TB and DS-TB as compared with HC (odds ratio [OR] = 3.125, confidence interval [C...