Aggressive Regimens for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Decrease All-Cause Mortality

RATIONALE: A better understanding of the composition of optimal treatment regimens for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is essential for expanding universal access to effective treatment and for developing new therapies for MDR-TB. Analysis of observational data may inform the definition of an optimized regimen. OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the impact of an aggressive regimen–one containing at least five likely effective drugs, including a fluoroquinolone and injectable–on treatment outcomes in a large MDR-TB patient cohort. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients treated in a national outpatient program in Peru between 1999 and 2002. We examined the association between receiving an aggressive regimen and the rate of death. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: In total, 669 patients were treated with individualized regimens for laboratory-confirmed MDR-TB. Isolates were resistant to a mean of 5.4 (SD 1.7) drugs. Cure or completion was achieved in 66.1% (442) of patients; death occurred in 20.8% (139). Patients who received an aggressive regimen were less likely to die (crude hazard ratio [HR]: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.44,0.89), compared to those who did not receive such a regimen. This association held in analyses adjusted for comorbidities and indicators of severity (adjusted HR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.43,0.93). CONCLUSIONS: The aggressive regimen is a robust predictor of MDR-TB treatment outcome. TB policy makers and program directors should consider this standard as they design and implement regimens for patients with drug-resistant disease. Furthermore, the aggressive regimen should be considered the standard background regimen when designing randomized trials of treatment for drug-resistant TB.