RESUMO
Recently, multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has become a therapeutic challenge. In addition to drug resistance, drug adverse events, intravenous delivery, cost and availability of some antibiotics in low-income countries have led to a look back to old drugs, especially those efficient against closely related organisms such as Mycobacterium leprae. Here we review the available drugs that respect the conditions above and could be upgraded to first-line therapy for treating MDR-TB and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB).
Assuntos
Antituberculosos/uso terapêutico , Sinergismo Farmacológico , Tuberculose Extensivamente Resistente a Medicamentos/tratamento farmacológico , Mycobacterium tuberculosis/efeitos dos fármacos , Antituberculosos/efeitos adversos , Claritromicina/efeitos adversos , Claritromicina/uso terapêutico , Clofazimina/efeitos adversos , Clofazimina/uso terapêutico , Farmacorresistência Bacteriana Múltipla , Tuberculose Extensivamente Resistente a Medicamentos/microbiologia , Humanos , Minociclina/efeitos adversos , Minociclina/uso terapêutico , Fenotiazinas/efeitos adversos , Fenotiazinas/uso terapêutico , Sulfonamidas/efeitos adversos , Sulfonamidas/uso terapêuticoRESUMO
The increased incidence of drug-resistant tuberculosis has created an urgent necessity for the development of new and effective anti-tuberculosis drugs and for alternative therapeutic regimens. Clofazimine (CFZ) is a fat-soluble riminophenazine dye used in the treatment of leprosy worldwide. CFZ has also been used as a Group 5 drug in the treatment of tuberculosis (TB). A large cohort study from Bangladesh published in 2010 described a treatment regimen for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) including CFZ as being highly effective against MDR-TB. We searched multiple databases for studies published through February 2012 that reported use of CFZ in MDR- and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) treatment regimens. We identified nine observational studies (6 MDR-TB and 3 XDR-TB) including patients with drug-resistant TB treated with CFZ. Overall, 65% (95% confidence interval [95%CI] 54-76) of the patients experienced favorable outcomes, defined as either cure or treatment completion. Using random effects meta-analysis, 65% (95%CI 52-79) of those with MDR-TB and 66% (95%CI 42-89) of those with XDR-TB experienced favorable treatment outcomes. High-quality prospective cohort studies and clinical trials examining the effect of CFZ as part of drug-resistant TB treatment regimens are needed.