DRUG-RESISTANT TUBERCULOSIS: LOCAL AND GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the leading infectious causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The emergence and persistence of drug-resistant forms—most importantly multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB, defined as resistance at least to isoniazid and rifampicin) and rifampicin-resistant TB (RR-TB)—threaten global TB control efforts and complicate clinical management. MDR/RR-TB requires longer, more toxic, and costlier regimens with lower success rates than drug-susceptible TB. In addition to pointing up significant programmatic gaps in diagnosis, treatment availability, and outcomes, recent worldwide surveillance and guideline updates—most notably WHO's 2022 consolidated advice and the worldwide TB Report 2024—have moved practice toward shorter, all-oral regimens (BPaL/BPaLM). This study examines the causes of the disparities, analyzes current estimates of MDR-TB prevalence and treatment results worldwide and for two locally relevant contexts (Kyrgyzstan and India), and summarizes the implications for TB control policy and phthisiology practice.