Initial drug susceptibility profile of M. tuberculosis among patients under TB programme in South India

Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients enrolled for treatment at government health facilities in a sub-district of Thiruvallur district, Tamil Nadu, India.

To determine the drug susceptibility profile among PTB patients admitted to treatment according to the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP).

From May 1999 to December 2003, two additional sputum samples were collected from all patients at the start of anti-tuberculosis treatment under DOTS and were transported to a central laboratory for Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture and drug susceptibility testing (DST).

DST results were available for 1603 new sputum smear-positive patients; 85% of patients had organisms fully susceptible to streptomycin (S), isoniazid (H) and rifampicin (R), 10.4% any resistance to H and 1.7% to HR. Of 443 patients with history of previous anti-tuberculosis treatment, 59% had organisms susceptible to S, H and R, 37% had any resistance to H and 11.7% to HR.

The DST profile showed that the vast majority of patients have drug-susceptible organisms, and that currently recommended regimens under the RNTCP would be effective in the treatment of TB.