Resistant TB Strains Are More Common in Parts of Former Soviet Union

Strains of tuberculosis that are resistant to front-line antibiotics are emerging around the world and are especially common in parts of the former Soviet Union, according to a World Health Organization survey reported in today’s New England Journal of Medicine. WHO found that although multi-drug resistance is still generally rare, a few countries have significant problems.

Worldwide, 1.4% of TB bacteria were found to be resistant to more than one of four common drugs used to treat the disease: isoniazid, rifampin, ethambutol and streptomycin. The highest rate of multi-drug resistance was found in Latvia, where 14.4% of samples could withstand more than one drug.

Compiled by Times medical writer Thomas H. Maugh II