Treatment outcomes in patients with multi-drug resistant tuberculosis

Objectives: The emergence of drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis has substantially challenged the goal of eliminating tuberculosis (TB) in the 21 st century. Treatment outcomes in patients with multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) are expected to improve with the implementation of the World Health Organization consolidated guidelines for the treatment of MDR-TB. This study aimed to evaluate documented therapeutic outcomes in patients with MDR-TB treated at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: It was a retrospective study conducted at the MDR-TB unit of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Nigeria. Data from case reports of patients with MDR-TB from 2013 to 2022 were extracted using a data collection checklist. Case reports with insufficient or missing information were excluded from the study. Data were summarized using the IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 25 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, USA). Results: Fifty case reports of patients with MDR-TB were evaluated. The most frequently prescribed anti-MDRTB drug combination was kanamycin, levofloxacin, pyrazinamide, prothionamide, cycloserine, and Vitamin B6 ( n = 17; 34%). Weight gain was documented in 54% ( n = 27) of the patients. Adverse events due to anti-MDR-TB medications was reported in 22% ( n = 11) of the patients with ototoxicity (45.5%; n = 5) being the most frequently documented. Thirty-four (68%) of the patients were cured; 10 (20%) discontinued treatment; while 12% of the patients died. Conclusion: Although majority of the patients with MDR-TB treated at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital were clinically cured, a significant proportion of the patients had poor treatment outcomes.