The latest TB treatment regimens recommended by WHO increase the chances of a full recovery. WHO Study: Shorter Tuberculosis Treatment Is Safe and Effective Health
Results from a World Health Organization (WHO)-led study in Eastern Europe and Central Asia confirm the high level of safety and effectiveness of updated nine-month treatment regimens for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB).& ;nbsp;
The treatment success rate is 83 percent, and the probability of relapse after 12 months does not exceed 1 percent.
Regional specifics
Although the standard nine-month treatment regimen recommended in 2020 is found to be safe and effective, resistance to four of the seven major drugs remains widespread in the WHO European Region. drugs used in this regimen. Therefore, the WHO Regional Office for Europe conducted a rapid study to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of regimens using other anti-TB drugs.
13 countries took part in the study: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.
V During the study, clinical specialists from national TB control programs worked with internationally recognized specialists from a WHO task force. Clinicians learned to more widely embrace outpatient models of care and identify side effects such as visual impairment.
Factors for recovery
The latest WHO-recommended TB treatment regimens improve the chances of a full recovery, making it easier for patients to adhere to and complete treatment, and the new regimens are more effective. Hospital stays are kept to a minimum and, in many cases, not required at all.
The study results also indicated a link between poor treatment response and risk factors for non-communicable diseases, such as smoking, drinking alcohol and poor diet. By monitoring these factors in the study, doctors and nurses were able to better understand what factors reduce their patients’ chances of full recovery.
In addition, a link was found between unemployment and poor treatment success TB, and therefore the social situation must be taken into account when planning support for patients.
Read also: