Extreme drug resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) update
Multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB), is caused by strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis which are resistant to at least two of the main first-line TB drugs, is already a growing concern. XDR-TB is defined as strains which are resistant to all the current the front-line drugs, but also three or more of the six classes of second-line drugs. In a few rare cases, a strain resistant to all currently available drugs have been seen.
Since WHO tuberculosis experts convened in South Africa last year to discuss how to address the problem, XDR-TB has slowly continued making its way around the world, recently being detected in India where it could account for 8% of those who suffer from TB, although there is no official data on the prevalence of XDR-TB in India and it is nearly impossible to determine the true prevalence of this strain in India.
The latest news is that a U.S. citizen – currently in hospital isolation in Georgia after becoming the first person quarantined in the U.S. by the government for more than 40 years – put air passengers at risk by boarding transatlantic flights knowing he was infected with XDR-TB when he traveled to Europe for his wedding and honeymoon.
Enforced quarantine is likely to become a more frequent choice for health care authorities and governments as XDR-TB continues its inexorable spread.
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In the headline of a Bob McCarty Writes™ post May 3, I raised this question: Will Liberals View Terrorism & TB in Similar Ways? Now, it seems we’re getting the opportunity to find out. It’s going to get interesting.
The new XMDR strains will create further confusion in the developing countries in particular to India we have huge population, a good number of persons suffer with tuberculosis and most of them are poor, and we have least facilities to diagnose tuberculosis except mass screening for detection of AFB from clinical samples,The Government of India funding to create centers with culture facilities and Diagnosis of drug resistance is need of the hour.Majority of the communicable diseases are treated by ill equipped private practitioners with least facilities for diagnosis, It is real threat somewhere we have to have scientific approach in detection of XMDR or the threat of untreatable tuberculosis is a reality
High rate of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis in Indian AIDS patients.
Reported in Nov. 2007 issue of the AIDS.
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