National Tuberculosis Programme Research Articles

Programmatic Implementation of Contact Investigation in Eight African Countries.

The objective was to implement CI under national tuberculosis programmatic conditions and to advocate for its scaling up. Contact investigation was implemented in 150 Basic Management Units identified across eight countries. The target populations (children <5 years and persons living with HIV (PLHIV)) were evaluated during home and clinic visits using standardized tools, clinical examinations and, according to each country, additional tests. Contacts with active TB received TB treatment and those eligible received TB preventive therapy (TPT). Data were collected each quarter using standardized forms. Meetings were organized with partners to share preliminary results and advocate for scaling up. From October 2020 to December 2021, 9049 home visits were performed. The proportions of children <5 years and PLHIV who were screened and diagnosed with active TB were, respectively, 2.6% and 10.1%. Ninety-three percent of children <5 years and 98% of PLHIV living at home received TPT or TB treatment, respectively. The scale-up for contact investigation partially or at national level in 2022 was effective in six of the eight countries included in the project. These results indicate that CI is feasible under programmatic conditions within the National TB Programs of African countries.

Coverage and effectiveness of conditional cash transfer for people with drug resistant tuberculosis in Zimbabwe: A mixed methods study.

The End TB strategy recommends social protection to mitigate socio-economic impacts of tuberculosis. Zimbabwe started implementing a conditional cash transfer (CCT) programme for people on drug resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) treatment in 2013. We aimed to determine the proportion of people receiving CCT and effectiveness of CCT in improving treatment outcomes, explore their experiences with registering for CCT and understand the impact of CCT from the perspective of beneficiaries. Data from 2014-2021 were extracted from TB registers and CCT payment records within the National TB Programme. Sixteen in-depth interviews were conducted with people who were completing treatment or had completed treatment within two months. Poisson regression, adjusted for province, year of treatment, age and sex was used to investigate associations between receiving CCT and successful treatment outcomes among people who were in DR-TB care for ≥3 months after treatment initiation. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. A total of 481 people were included in the quantitative study. Of these, 53% (254/481) received CCT at some point during treatment. People who exited DR-TB care within three months were 73% less likely to receive CCT than those who did not (prevalence ratio (PR) = 0.27 [95%CI: 0.18-0.41]). Among those who were alive and in care three months after treatment initiation, CCT recipients were 32% more likely to have successful outcomes than those who did not (adjusted PR = 1.32, [95%CI: 1.00-1.75]). Qualitative results revealed lack of knowledge about availability of CCT among people with DR-TB and missed opportunities by healthcare providers to provide information about availability of CCT. Delays and inconsistencies in disbursements of CCT were frequent themes. CCT were associated with successful treatment outcomes. Improvements in coverage, timeliness and predictability of disbursements are recommended.

Safety, effectiveness, and adherence of a short and all-oral treatment regimen for the treatment of rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis in Niger: a study protocol of a pragmatic randomised clinical trial with stratified block randomisation

BackgroundRifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) treatment requires combination treatment, which frequently causes serious adverse events and globally results in not much more than 60% treatment success. In Niger, a high cure rate was obtained with a RR-TB treatment strategy based on a second-line injectable drug (SLID)-containing Short Treatment Regimen (STR), with linezolid replacing the SLID in patients with ototoxicity. Given the availability of novel anti-tuberculosis drugs, WHO recommends all-oral RR-TB treatment. Considering the high level of success with the Niger treatment strategy, it would only be justified to replace it in case robust evidence shows that the WHO all-oral bedaquiline/linezolid (BDQ/LZD)-containing STR (experimental arm) performs better than the Niger RR-TB treatment strategy, (control arm) in terms of safety, effectiveness and adherence.MethodsA pragmatic randomised clinical trial (RCT) using stratified block randomisation, conducted between April 2021 and March 2024, prospectively enrols participants diagnosed with RR-TB in one of the four RR-TB units of the nation. Depending of the month in which patients are diagnosed with RR-TB, patients with FQ-susceptible RR-TB are enrolled in either the experimental arm or control arm.DiscussionTo increase the feasibility of conducting a RCT, embedded in routine activities of all Niger’s RR-TB Units, we used a creative trial design. We randomised by monthly blocks, whereby the regimen used changes every month, using the month of RR-TB diagnosis as stratifying variable. This approach was deemed feasible for Niger's national tuberculosis programme, as it simplifies the work of the clinicians running the RR-TB units. Our creative design may serve as an example for other national programs. Findings will inform national and international RR-TB treatment guidelines, and will also strengthen the evidence-base on how to develop robust RR-TB treatment regimens.Trial registrationPan African Clinical Trial Register PACTR202203645724919. Registered on 15 March 2022.

Protocol for the Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis in Nepal (ASCOT) pilot trial.

BACKGROUND:The World Health Organization's End TB (tuberculosis) Strategy advocates social and economic support for TB-affected households but evidence from low-income settings is scarce. We will evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a locally-appropriate socioeconomic support intervention for TB-affected households in Nepal. METHODS:We will conduct a pilot randomised-controlled trial with mixed-methods process evaluation in four TB-endemic, impoverished districts of Nepal: Pyuthan, Chitwan, Mahottari, and Morang.We will recruit 128 people with TB notified to the Nepal National TB Program (NTP) and 40 multisectoral stakeholders including NTP staff, civil-society members, policy-makers, and ASCOT (Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis) team members. People with TB will be randomised 1:1:1:1 to four study arms (n=32 each): control; social support; economic support; and combined social and economic (socioeconomic) support. Social support will be TB education and peer-led mutual-support TB Clubs providing TB education and stigma-reduction counselling. Economic support will be monthly unconditional cash transfers during TB treatment with expectations (not conditions) of meeting NTP goals. At 0, 2, and 6 months following TB treatment initiation, participants will be asked to complete a survey detailing the social determinants and consequences of TB and their feedback on ASCOT. Complementary process evaluation will use focus group discussions (FGD), key informant interviews (KII), and a workshop with multi-sectoral stakeholders to consider the challenges to ASCOT's implementation and scale-up.A sample of ~100 people with TB is recommended to estimate TB-related costs.Information power is estimated to be reached with approximately 25 FGD and 15 KII participants. CONCLUSIONS:The ASCOT pilot trial will both generate robust evidence on a locally-appropriate, socioeconomic support intervention for TB-affected households in Nepal and inform a large-scale future ASCOT trial, which will evaluate the intervention's impact on catastrophic costs mitigation and TB outcomes. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN ( ISRCTN17025974).

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis in China: a national survey

ObjectivesExtrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) is not a notifiable infectious disease in China but is a heavy burden on public health. However, the epidemic situation of EPTB nationwide is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the magnitude and main subtypes of EPTB in China. MethodsWe conducted a national cross-sectional study with multistage, stratified cluster random sampling during 2020-2021. We calculated proportions of EPTB in all patients with TB by organs. Logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios by characteristics. ResultsA total of 6843 patients with TB were included. Of them, 24.6% were patients with EPTB, and the proportion of EPTB solo was 21.3%. Higher EPTB burden was observed in children, female patients, clinically diagnosed patients, provincial-level and prefectural-level health facilities, and Central and West China. EPTB occurred most frequently in respiratory (35.5%), musculoskeletal (15.8%), and peripheral lymphatic (15.8%) systems with top three subtypes, including tuberculous pleurisy (35.0%), spinal TB (9.8%) and cervical tuberculous lymphadenopathy (7.9%). With the increase of age, proportion of peripheral lymphatic TB decreased, and proportion rank of genitourinary TB rose. ConclusionIt is essential to strengthen the diagnosis and treatment capacity for EPTB in primary medical facilities. EPTB should be added to the National Tuberculosis Program as a notifiable disease.

Characterising and Addressing the Psychosocial Impact of Tuberculosis in Indonesia (CAPITA): A study protocol.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB)-related stigma remains a key barrier for people with TB to access and engage with TB services and can contribute to the development of mental illnesses. This study aims to characterise stigmatisation towards people with TB and its psychosocial impact in Indonesia. Methods: This study will apply a sequential mixed method in two main settings: TB services-based population (setting 1) and workplace-based population (setting 2). In setting 1, we will interview 770 adults with TB who undergo sensitive-drug TB treatment in seven provinces of Indonesia. The interview will use the validated TB Stigma Scale questionnaire, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and EQ-5D-5L to assess stigma, mental illness, and quality of life. In Setting 2, we will deploy an online questionnaire to 640 adult employees in 12 public and private companies. The quantitative data will be followed by in-depth interview to TB-related stakeholders. Results: CAPITA will not only characterise the enacted stigma which are directly experienced by people with TB, but also self-stigma felt by people with TB, secondary stigma faced by their family members, and structural stigma related to the law and policy. The qualitative analyses will strengthen the quantitative findings to formulate the potential policy direction for zero TB stigma in health service facilities and workplaces. Involving all stakeholders, i.e., people with TB, healthcare workers, National Tuberculosis Program officers, The Ministry of Health Workforce, company managers, and employees, will enhance the policy formulation. The validated tool to measure TB-related stigma will also be promoted for scaling up to be implemented at the national level. Conclusions: To improve patient-centered TB control strategy policy, it is essential to characterise and address TB-related stigma and mental illness and explore the needs for psychosocial support for an effective intervention to mitigate the psychosocial impact of TB.

Development and expert validation of a ‘Data-to-Action Continuum’ to measure and advance the data-use capabilities of national tuberculosis programs

Background The Data-to-Action Continuum (D2AC) Toolkit is intended to advance the data use capabilities associated with people, processes, technology, and institutions of national tuberculosis programs (NTPs). It empowers NTPs and stakeholders to measure current capabilities, identify areas amenable to interventions to build future capacities, and helps align the TB information system to better achieve the NTP’s goals. This paper describes the development process of the D2AC Toolkit, whose aim is to enable NTPs and stakeholders—especially the policymakers, program managers, and laboratory and facility managers—to precisely gauge the barriers limiting the use of data for action and devise appropriate interventions to address them. Methods Building on a scientific and grey literature foundation, the D2AC Toolkit was collaboratively developed by a core group of the TB data, Impact Assessment and Communications Hub (TB DIAH) project. The Toolkit was validated by a group of international and country-level experts following an iterative and user-centered process employing mixed methods. Results The expert-validated D2AC Toolkit measures appropriate capabilities required to transform data to action in the context of an NTP at the national, regional, district, and facility levels across five domains and 17 subdomains using a five-point Likert scale: nascent, defined, established, institutionalized, and optimized. Conclusions The continuum describes the status of various domains and corresponding subdomains and enables the identification of future goals for each subdomain. The future capabilities are meant to guide the development of an improvement path toward the desired level of advancement and monitor progress toward the desired goals. By integrating an iterative and user-centered process and using mixed methods, the D2AC Toolkit enables policymakers, program managers, and service providers to gauge current capabilities, identify future priorities, and develop an implementation plan to improve the organizational ability to transform data to action for achieving tuberculosis program goals.

Nghiên cứu tỷ lệ phân bố các loài Nontuberculous mycobacteria phân lập được tại bệnh viện 74 Trung ương bằng phương pháp giải trình tự gen hsp65

In recent years, the burden of nontuberculous mycobacteria pulmonary disease has increased worldwide. Nontuberculous mycobacteria - NTM infection is often misdiagnosed with Mycobacterium tuberculosis - MTB because of their similar clinical manifestations and preclinical manifestations. For MTB, the National Tuberculosis Program and the Ministry of Health (Vietnam) have a standard treatment regimen, while for NTM, an individualized treatment regimen based on infectious NTM species. Therefore, accurate identification of the causative NTM species can help clinicians choosing an effective treatment regimen. Among 122 suspected NTM samples collected at National Hospital 74, we successfully identified 115 strains belonging to NTM. Analytical DNA sequences, building phylogenetic trees were analyzed by Bioedit, ClustalX2, and MEGA-X software; comparing and identifying reference species from gene bank were used BLAST-NCBI. Slow-growing mycobacteria accounted for 61.7%, consists of Mycobacterium avium complex (37.4%), Mycobacterium lentiflavum (7.0%), Mycobacterium simiae (7.0%), Mycobacterium gordonae complex (5.2%) and other species less than 2.0%. The detection rate of rapid-growing mycobacteria was 38.3% including Mycobacterium abscessus complex (31.3%), and Mycobacterium fortuitum (7.0%). The most prevalent NTM species belonged to Mycobacterium avium complex and Mycobacterium abscessus complex (68.7%). The proportion of NTM infection in patients 50 years and older is 2.3 times higher than in patients under 50 years. This proportion is 5 times higher in females while there is no significant difference in males.

Protocol for the Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis in Nepal (ASCOT) pilot trial.

BACKGROUND:The World Health Organization's End TB (tuberculosis) Strategy advocates social and economic support for TB-affected households but evidence from low-income settings is scarce. We will evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a locally-appropriate socioeconomic support intervention for TB-affected households in Nepal. METHODS:We will conduct a pilot randomised-controlled trial with mixed-methods process evaluation in four TB-endemic, impoverished districts of Nepal: Pyuthan, Chitwan, Mahottari, and Morang.We will recruit 128 people with TB notified to the Nepal National TB Program (NTP) and 40 multisectoral stakeholders including NTP staff, civil-society members, policy-makers, and ASCOT (Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis) team members. People with TB will be randomised 1:1:1:1 to four study arms (n=32 each): control; social support; economic support; and combined social and economic (socioeconomic) support. Social support will be TB education and peer-led mutual-support TB Clubs providing TB education and stigma-reduction counselling. Economic support will be monthly unconditional cash transfers during TB treatment with expectations (not conditions) of meeting NTP goals. At 0, 2, and 6 months following TB treatment initiation, participants will be asked to complete a survey detailing the social determinants and consequences of TB and their feedback on ASCOT. Complementary process evaluation will use focus group discussions (FGD), key informant interviews (KII), and a workshop with multi-sectoral stakeholders to consider the challenges to ASCOT's implementation and scale-up.A sample of ~100 people with TB is recommended to estimate TB-related costs.Information power is estimated to be reached with approximately 25 FGD and 15 KII participants. CONCLUSIONS:The ASCOT pilot trial will both generate robust evidence on a locally-appropriate, socioeconomic support intervention for TB-affected households in Nepal and inform a large-scale future ASCOT trial, which will evaluate the intervention's impact on catastrophic costs mitigation and TB outcomes. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN ( ISRCTN17025974).

Characteristics and contributing factors of adverse drug reactions: an analytical study of patients with tuberculosis receiving treatment under the National TB Program of India

Background Tuberculosis (TB) continues to pose a serious threat to the public health system in India. Although the National Tuberculosis Elimination Program (NTEP) is providing a wide range of interventions from early diagnosis to complete treatment to reduce morbidity and mortality from TB, adverse drug reactions (ADR) remain a challenge in treatment adherence and completion. Methods An observational cross-sectional study was conducted in selected districts of Gujarat state. A total of 593 reported TB patients were recruited with an adjusted unified distribution based on the type of cases, site of diseases, and service facility through a simple random sampling method. A semi-structured questionnaire tool was used to collect socio-demographic, clinical, and ADR-related data from the TB patients. Data was analyzed for the frequency, percentage, chi-squared, and adjusted odds ratio to find the association between the variables. Results The majority of the study participants were male (87.2%), aged 15 to 60 (57.8%), daily laborers (22.4%), and married (64.2%). Over 75% of individuals had pulmonary TB, with 87% having experienced their first episode, 83% being new cases, and 44.7% having a history of addiction. ADR with mild symptoms was reported by more than a quarter (29%) of TB patients during the intensive phase (77%). The association between ADR experience and drug susceptibility was significant (p&lt;0.005) and drug-resistant TB patients experience two times more ADRs than drug-sensitive TB patients (OR 2.04). Binomial logistic regression was carried out to describe the association between various variables and occurrence of ADRs. Conclusion The study highlighted a need to enhance health care providers’ capacity and program structure for managing ADRs among TB patients. In order to completely eliminate TB across the country, it also emphasized the attention for a holistic and all-encompassing strategy for managing TB patients at the field level.

Is aggregated surveillance data a reliable method for constructing tuberculosis care cascades? A secondary data analysis from Uganda.

To accelerate tuberculosis (TB) control and elimination, reliable data is needed to improve the quality of TB care. We assessed agreement between a surveillance dataset routinely collected for Uganda's national TB program and a high-fidelity dataset collected from the same source documents for a research study from 32 health facilities in 2017 and 2019 for six measurements: 1) Smear-positive and 2) GeneXpert-positive diagnoses, 3) bacteriologically confirmed and 4) clinically diagnosed treatment initiations, and the number of people initiating TB treatment who were also 5) living with HIV or 6) taking antiretroviral therapy. We measured agreement as the average difference between the two methods, expressed as the average ratio of the surveillance counts to the research data counts, its 95% limits of agreement (LOA), and the concordance correlation coefficient. We used linear mixed models to investigate whether agreement changed over time or was associated with facility characteristics. We found good overall agreement with some variation in the expected facility-level agreement for the number of smear positive diagnoses (average ratio [95% LOA]: 1.04 [0.38-2.82]; CCC: 0.78), bacteriologically confirmed treatment initiations (1.07 [0.67-1.70]; 0.82), and people living with HIV (1.11 [0.51-2.41]; 0.82). Agreement was poor for Xpert positives, with surveillance data undercounting relative to research data (0.45 [0.099-2.07]; 0.36). Although surveillance data overcounted relative to research data for clinically diagnosed treatment initiations (1.52 [0.71-3.26]) and number of people taking antiretroviral therapy (1.71 [0.71-4.12]), their agreement as assessed by CCC was not poor (0.82 and 0.62, respectively). Average agreement was similar across study years for all six measurements, but facility-level agreement varied from year to year and was not explained by facility characteristics. In conclusion, the agreement of TB surveillance data with high-fidelity research data was highly variable across measurements and facilities. To advance the use of routine TB data as a quality improvement tool, future research should elucidate and address reasons for variability in its quality.

Clinical and economic burden of drug-susceptible tuberculosis in Indonesia: national trends 2017–19

The global incidence of tuberculosis is decreasing, yet it remains high in Indonesia. The Indonesian National Tuberculosis Program facilitates mandatory notification, which enables early detection and treatment, minimises complications, prevents transmission, and decreases deaths. This study aimed to assess the characteristics, trends, and economic burden of notified drug-susceptible tuberculosis cases registered in this system from 2017 to 2019. We performed a multiyear cross-sectional study focusing on drug-susceptible tuberculosis notified cases, incidence, geographical tuberculosis case distribution, treatment outcomes, and costs in Indonesia using data from Sistem Informasi Tuberkulosis (2017-19). The settings were Indonesian health-care facilities that provide tuberculosis control programmes and services. Eligible patients were those who were diagnosed with drug-susceptible tuberculosis and notified to Sistem Informasi Tuberkulosis. Between 2017 and 2019, notified cases increased from 429 219 to 523 614 individuals, corresponding to an increase in incidence from 167 cases per 100 000 to 196 cases per 100 000. In 2019, more than 250 cases per 100 000 inhabitants were notified in Jakarta, North Sulawesi, Gorontalo, and Papua. Treatment success rate increased from 363 098 (84·60%) of 429 219 in 2017 to 452 966 (86·51%) of 523 614 in 2019, with a relatively stable mortality, changing from 3·15% to 3·05%. HIV status was increasingly confirmed, with unknown status decreasing from 66·21% to 43·68%. The costs of visits and monitoring and drug regimens were relatively stable, with total direct medical costs slightly increasing from US$39·40 to $40·40 per case. Progress was made on drug-susceptible tuberculosis management in Indonesia. However, further intensified efforts, including case-finding, optimising diagnosis, and cost-effective tuberculosis management are required if Indonesia is to achieve the 2025 WHO End Tuberculosis Strategy target incidence of fewer than 55 cases per 100 000 people. These data are an important starting point for understanding drug-susceptible tuberculosis dynamics in Indonesia and optimising its management. Directorate General of Higher Education; Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia.

Pulmonary Non-tuberculous Mycobacterial Infections in Category II Failures from National Tuberculosis Programme

Pulmonary infections due to non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are increasingly being reported. These can mimic drug-resitant tubercuolosis. A diagnosis of NTM infections needs a high degree of clinical suspicion and repeated isolation of the organism on culture. NTM infections occur commonly in immunocompromised individuals and in people with lung abnormalities. Currently there are no guidelines on drug combinations and the duration of treatment is not adequately defined. Two cases of pulmonary infection with NTM in immune-competent individuals are described in the present report. Although the bacteriological, radiological and clinical response to treatment was good; early discontinuation of treatment resulted in recurrence and change in drug susceptibility pattern, suggesting the need for prolonged treatment for achieving cure.

How Do Private Providers Unaffiliated With the Nigeria National TB Program Diagnose and Treat Drug-Susceptible TB Patients? A Cross-Sectional Study.

TB diagnosis and treatment practices among private providers not affiliated with the Nigeria National TB Program (NTP) have implications for TB control efforts. Studies evaluating these practices among non-NTP providers are scarce. We aimed to investigate TB diagnosis and treatment practices among non-NTP private providers in urban Lagos State, Nigeria. We conducted a cross-sectional study among doctors and nurses operating private facilities not formally affiliated with the NTP for TB case notification. Between May 2018 and January 2019, we implemented a survey using a pretested questionnaire among 152 doctors and nurses attending TB sensitization seminars in Lagos, Nigeria. We used descriptive statistics to summarize the sociodemographic information and proportion of non-NTP providers with different self-reported TB diagnostic, prescription, and monitoring practices. Private non-NTP doctors and nurses self-reported diagnosing TB using 8 different types of tests. Acid-fast bacilli was the most common (39.8%) means of diagnosing TB. Private non-NTP providers also self-reported prescribing 23 different TB regimens, including streptomycin, to treat TB. Only 32.4% of providers self-reported using the correct combinations of anti-TB drugs to treat TB. Additionally, 58.3% of providers prescribed the standard 6-month treatment duration for pulmonary TB patients, and the remaining 41.7% either undertreated or overtreated TB. A large proportion of private doctors and nurses not formally affiliated with the NTP in Nigeria were not following the NTP guidelines in the diagnosis and treatment of TB. Overtreatment and undertreatment were common. Engagement of these practitioners by the NTP in the form of supervision, on-the-job mentorship, and other strategies can mitigate the negative effects of their current practices on TB case notification and the spread of drug-resistant strains in Nigeria.

COVID-19 and global childhood tuberculosis notifications

Globally, an estimated 1·2 million cases of tuberculosis disease each year occur in children younger than 15 years, and around 67 million children have tuberculosis infection, putting them at the risk of developing tuberculosis disease.1 Tuberculosis in childhood was historically neglected in surveillance efforts, with national tuberculosis programmes focusing primarily on cases of microscopically smear-positive tuberculosis, which is more common among older adolescents or adults. The diagnosis of tuberculosis in children is made challenging by low suspicion among health-care providers, reliance on sputum microscopy, which has very low sensitivity (ranging from 1–14%), children's difficulty in producing sputum, or disease with low bacillary load.

Characteristics of Drug-sensitive and Drug-resistant Tuberculosis Cases among Adults at Tuberculosis Referral Hospitals in Indonesia.

As Indonesia's rifampin resistance testing rates are lower than global testing rates per the 2020 WHO global tuberculosis (TB) report, prevalence of multidrug-resistant TB may be underestimated. Our study aimed to evaluate prevalence and patterns of TB drug resistance (DR) within Indonesia. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data collected from 2017-2018 as part of a cohort study of adults with presumed pulmonary TB at 7 DR-TB referral hospitals in Indonesia. Bacteriological examinations (acid-fast bacilli, GeneXpert, sputum culture) and drug-susceptibility testing were performed following the guidelines of the National TB Program. Of 447 participants with complete bacteriological examinations, 312 (69.8%) had positive sputum cultures for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The proportion of MDR and pre-extensively drug-resistant was higher in previously treated compared with newly diagnosed participants (52.5% [73/139] versus 15% [26/173]). Compared with drug-sensitive case, drug-resistant TB was associated with cavities. Given the difference between rates of DR in TB referral hospitals from our study compared with the WHO survey in 2019 that showed 17.7% and 3.3% DR among previously treated and newly diagnosed participants globally, further characterization of Indonesia's TB epidemiology in the general population is needed. Strategies, including public policies to optimize case finding, strengthen capacity for resistance testing, and prevent loss to follow-up will be critical to reduce the burden of TB in Indonesia.

Pediatric tuberculosis outcomes and factors associated with unfavorable treatment outcomes in Botswana, 2008–2019: a retrospective analysis

IntroductionGlobally, the amount of research on the outcomes of pediatric tuberculosis (TB) is disproportionately less than that of adult TB. The diagnosis of paediatric TB is also problematic in developing countries. The aim of this study was to describe the outcomes of pediatric TB in Botswana and to identify the factors associated with unfavorable outcomes.MethodsThis was a retrospective analysis of pediatric TB outcomes in Botswana, over a 12-year period from January 2008 to December 2019. Treatment success (treatment completion or cured) was considered a favorable outcome, while death, loss to follow-up and treatment failure were considered unfavorable outcomes. Program data from drug-sensitive TB (DS-TB) cases under the age of 15 years were included. Sampling was exhaustive. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the factors associated with unfavorable outcomes during TB treatment. A p value of < 0.05 was considered a statistically significant association between the predictor variables and unfavorable outcomes.ResultsThe data of 6,004 paediatric TB cases were extracted from the Botswana National TB Program (BNTP) electronic registry and analyzed. Of these data, 2,948 (49.4%) were of female patients. Of the extracted data, 1,366 (22.8%) were of HIV positive patients and 2,966 (49.4%) were of HIV negative patients. The rest of the data were of patients with unknown HIV status. Pulmonary TB accounted for 4,701 (78.3%) of the cases. Overall, 5,591 (93.1%) of the paediatric TB patient data showed treatment success, 179 (3.0%) were lost to follow-up, 203 (3.4%) records were of patients who died, and 31 (0.5%) were of patients who experienced treatment failure. The factors associated with unfavorable outcomes were positive HIV status (AOR 2.71, 95% CI: 2.09–3.52), unknown HIV status (AOR 2.07, 95% CI: 1.60–2.69) and retreatment category (AOR 1.92, 95% CI: 1.30–2.85). Compared with the 0–4 years age category, the 5–9 years (AOR 0.62, 95% CI: 0.47–0.82) and 10–14 years (AOR 0.76, 95% CI: 0.60–0.98) age categories were less likely to experience the unfavorable outcomes.ConclusionThis study shows a high treatment success rate among paediatric TB cases in Botswana. The government under the National TB Program should maintain and consolidate the gains from this program. Public health interventions should particularly target children with a positive or unknown HIV status, those under 5 years, and those who have been previously treated for TB.

Cost of TB services: approach and summary findings of a multi-country study (Value TB).

BACKGROUND: There are currently large gaps in unit cost data for TB, and substantial variation in the quality and methods of unit cost estimates. Uncertainties remain about sample size, range and comprehensiveness of cost data collection for different purposes. We present the methods and results of a project implemented in Kenya, Ethiopia, India, The Philippines and Georgia to estimate unit costs of TB services, focusing on findings most relevant to these remaining methodological challenges.METHODS: We estimated financial and economic unit costs, in close collaboration with national TB programmes. Gold standard methods included both top-down and bottom-up approaches to resource use measurement. Costs are presented in 2018 USD and local currency unit.RESULTS: Cost drivers of outputs varied by service and across countries, as did levels of capacity inefficiency. There was substantial variation in unit cost estimates for some interventions and high overhead costs were observed. Estimates were subject to sampling uncertainty, and some data gaps remain.CONCLUSION: This paper describes detailed methods for the largest TB costing effort to date, to inform prioritisation and planning for TB services. This study provides a strong baseline and some cost estimates may be extrapolated from this data; however, regular further studies of similar quality are needed to add estimates for remaining gaps, or to add new or changing services and interventions. Further research is needed on the best approach to extrapolation of cost data. Costing studies are best implemented as partnerships with policy makers to generate a community of mutual learning and capacity development.

A study of adverse drug reactions in tuberculosis patients in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Tuberculosis is the most rambling communicable infectious disease on earth. It is the single most common cause of death in individuals aged 15-49 years. Adverse drug reactions to antitubercular drugs causing significant morbidity, mortality, incurring substantial additional costs because of added outpatient visits, tests, and hospitalizations. Study was carried out with objectives of assessing the rate and type of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and detecting serious and preventable ADRs with collection of demographic details of patients taking antitubercular drugs and developing ADRS.Methods: A cross sectional, prospective, observational study conducted in department of chest and TB of a tertiary Health care and teaching hospital in both IPD and OPD patients for a period of 18 months. 480 patients monitored.Results: Among 480 patients 120 i.e., 25% developed ADR. frequency being significantly higher in males (58%) and adult age group (&gt;18 years) amongst hospitalized comparing to outdoor patients the gastrointestinal tract [GIT] (39%) followed by, generalized body disorders (19%) hepatobiliary system (17%) were organ systems most affected Majority (56%) ADRs reported in 0-2 month of starting therapy (63%) of cases were in “probable according to Naranjo causality assessment (37%) being possible. 55% ADRs were moderate in severity followed by 36% mild and 9% severe. 30% of ADRs were definitely preventable followed by 20% of probably prevented according to schumock thronstone preventability scaleConclusions: Study highlights the importance of routine monitoring and robust pharmacovigilance system for success of national tuberculosis programmes in India as well as worldwide.

Safety and effectiveness of all-oral and injectable-containing, bedaquiline-based long treatment regimen for pre-XDR tuberculosis in Vietnam.

Background: The World health organization (WHO) recently recommended standardized all-oral shorter regimens for rifampicin resistant Tuberculosis (RR-TB). For highly resistant Tuberculosis patients such as pre-XDR-TB: RR-TB plus additional resistance to fluoroquinolones (FQ), the 6–9-months bedaquiline (bedaquiline)-based regimens or BDQ-based long regimens are recommended. The role of second-line injectable (SLI) drugs in the treatment of drug resistant TB is restricted because of safety concerns. Nevertheless, it is not well-known how all-oral long regimens (BDQ-long) perform compared to SLI-containing long regimens (BDQ/SLI-long) in terms of safety and effectiveness among patients with highly resistant TB. Method: A prospective observational cohort of patients with RR-TB additionally resistant to fluoroquinolones and/or second-line injectable, treated with either BDQ-long or BDQ/SLI-long regimens according to the guidance of the National Tuberculosis Program of Vietnam, enrolled between December 2015 and June 2017. Results: Of 99 patients enrolled, 42 (42%) patients were treated with BDQ-long and 57 (57%) with BDQ/SLI-long. More than 85% of patients were previously exposed to both FQ and SLI. FQ and SLI resistance were confirmed in 28 (67%) and 41 (98%) in the BDQ-long cohort and 48 (84%) and 17 (30%) in the BDQ/SLI-long cohort, respectively. Treatment success was achieved among 29 (69%) and 46 (81%) patients on the BDQ-long and BDQ/SLI-long regimen, respectively (p = 0.2). For both regimens, median time to first smear/culture sputum conversion was 2 months. All patients experienced at least one adverse event (AE) and 85% of them had at least one severe Adverse events. The median time to a first severe adverse event was 2 months. Among patients treated with BDQ-long a higher proportion of patients had three QT-prolonging drugs in the regimen (26.2% versus 7.0%; p = 0.009). The severe prolonged QTcF was observed in 22 (52.4%) and 22 (38.6%) patients on BDQ-long and BDQ/SLI-long, respectively. Overall, 30 (30%) patients had to either temporary or permanently discontinued or more TB drugs due to AEs. Conclusion: Treatment success was similar for both all-oral and SLI-containing BDQ-based long regimens in highly resistant TB patients. Both regimens had a similar high frequency of AEs. For both BDQ-long and BDQ/SLI-long regimens active AEs monitoring is essential.