BMJ  2006;333:559-560 (16 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.38971.587222.AB

Editorial

Extensively drug resistant tuberculosis

A serious wake-up call for global health

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Tuberculosis outbreaks in the developed world are newsworthy.¹ However, in the developing world, where deaths from tuberculosis are common, it takes something exceptional for an outbreak to attract much attention. In response to a recent report at the 16th international AIDS conference² and to increasing South African media reports, the World Health Organization last week expressed concern about extensively drug resistant tuberculosis (also referred to as "XDR tuberculosis").³

Among 536 culture confirmed cases of tuberculosis at a rural hospital in South Africa, 41% were multidrug resistant,² defined as resistance to rifampicin and isoniazid (two key first line drugs). This is cause enough for concern as multidrug resistant tuberculosis has a worse outcome and its management is very difficult even in high resource settings.⁴ Even more alarming was that 53 (24%) of the isolates from multidrug resistant tuberculosis fulfilled the definition of extensively drug resistant tuberculosis²—namely, multidrug resistant tuberculosis . . . [Full text of this article]

Desmond Tutu HIV Centre, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Anzio Road, Observatory 7925, Cape Town, South Africa
(stevelawn@yahoo.co.uk)

Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, University of Cape Town

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