Mohammed Umar Farooque1
BACKGROUND
The treatment for Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (DR-TB) is not adequate and outcomes are poorer than for drug-susceptible TB, particularly for patients treated for second-line drugs, treatment failures or extensively drug-resistant (XDR-TB) patients (Complicated DR-TB). Linezolid is not recommended for routine DR-TB treatment due to lack of efficacy data but is indicated in case where 2nd line regimens are difficult to design.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We searched PubMed,Embase and Abstracts from World Conferences of The union for Studies published through February 2011. In these Linezolid was given systematically to DR-TB Patient and outcomes were reported.
RESULTS
A total of 11 studies were included representing 148 patients. The pooled proportion for treatment success was 67.99%. There was no significant differences in success comparing daily Linezolid dose (600 vs 600 mg) and mean Linezolid duration ( 7 vs 7 months). The pooled estimate for the frequency of any adverse events was 61.48% (95%CI 40.15-82.80) with 36.23% (95%CI 20.67-51.79) discontinuing Linezolid due to adverse events.
CONCLUSION
Treatment success with Linezolid was equal to or better than that commonly achieved for uncomplicated DR-TB and better than previous reports for previously treated patient and those with XDR-TB while data are limited. Linezolid appears to be a useful drug albeit associated with significant adverse events and could be considered for the treatment of complicated DR-TB.
