Evaluation of Treatment Outcomes in Shorter and Longer Regimen Treatment in Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) Patients in District Etawah: A Longitudinal Study

Background: Multi-drug resistance tuberculosis is a worldwide problem with a notoriously difficult and challenging treatment. There are two treatment regimens for MDR-TB treatment. Objectives: To compare the predisposing risk factors and treatment outcomes in two different drug regimens for the treatment of MDR-TB. Material and methods: A field based longitudinal study was carried out among 50 microbiologically confirmed MDR-TB patients of age 18 years and above, enrolled from January 2020 to December 2020 of district Etawah. Variables recorded were socio-demographics, clinical profile and treatment outcomes. Result: Mean age of the participants was 30.70±12.52 years. Most of the participants were female (58%) and belonged to Class II and III of Modified BG Prasad Classification. Most of the participants (62%) had BMI of <18.5Kg/m2. About 93% of the study participants in the shorter regimen completed the treatment and were cured. The participants with no prior history of tuberculosis had better treatment outcome (p=<0.001).   Conclusion: The present study concludes that successful treatment outcome is more in shorter treatment regimen compared to longer treatment regimen. Keywords: MDR-TB, shorter regimen, longer regimen, treatment outcomes, NTEP, India