The production and sales of anti-tuberculosis drugs in China

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major infectious disease globally. Adequate and proper use of anti-TB drugs is essential for TB control. This study aims to study China’s production capacity and sales situation of anti-TB drugs, and to further discuss the potential for China to contribute to global TB control. METHODS: The production data of anti-TB drugs in China from 2011 to 2013 and the sales data from 2010 to 2014 were extracted from Ministry of Industry and Information Technology database of China and IMS Health database, respectively. The number of drugs was standardized to the molecular level of the key components before calculating. All data were described and analyzed by Microsoft Excel. RESULTS: First-line drugs were the majority in both sales (89.5 %) and production (92.3 %) of anti-TB drugs in China. The production of rifampicin held the majority share in active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and finished products, whilst ethambutol and pyrazinamide were the top two sales in finished products. Fixed-dose combinations only held small percentages in total production and sales weight, though a slight increase was observed. The production and sales of streptomycin showed a tendency of decrease after 2012. The trends and proportion of different anti-TB drugs were similar in production and sales, however, the production weight was much larger than that of sales, especially for rifampicin and isoniazid. CONCLUSIONS: First-line drugs were the predominant medicine produced and used in China. While the low production and sales of the second-line TB drugs and FDCs rose concerns for the treatment of multiple drug resistant TB. The redundant production amount, as well as the prompt influence of national policy on drug production and sales, indicated the potential for China to better contribute to global TB control. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40249-016-0184-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.