Long-term Follow-up Reveals High Posttreatment Mortality Rate Among Patients With Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in the Country of Georgia

BACKGROUND: Given very limited data, we assessed the long-term outcomes among patients with extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB). METHODS: A retrospective population-based cohort study was performed in patients with XDR-TB diagnosed during 2011–2013 in the country of Georgia. Data were abstracted from the National TB Program, medical charts, interviews, and the national Georgian death registry. RESULTS: Among 111 patients starting treatment for XDR-TB, 59 (53.2%) had newly diagnosed tuberculosis, and 3 (2.9%) had human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) coinfection. The median length of follow-up from diagnosis of XDR-TB to death or the end of study was 53.9 months (interquartile range, 27.2–66.3 months). End-of-treatment outcomes were available for 106 patients; 35 (33.0%) had a favorable outcome, and 71 (67.0%) had an unfavorable outcome, including death in 16 (15.1%). An additional 20 patients died after cessation of initial treatment, increasing the overall mortality rate to 34.0%. In multivariable analysis, an unfavorable initial end-of-treatment outcome was associated with posttreatment death (adjusted odds ratio, 14.41; 95% confidence interval, 1.78–117.13). CONCLUSIONS: The overall mortality rate and specifically the posttreatment mortality rate were high among patients with XDR-TB. Patients with an unfavorable end-of-treatment outcome had an increased risk of death during follow-up. Our findings highlight the need for improved adherence, better-tolerated and shorter therapies, and enhanced posttreatment surveillance among patients treated for XDR-TB.