The treatment of drug-susceptible tuberculosis (DS-TB) in Romania should follow international recommendations, pulmonologist Beatrice Mahler said on Tuesday, March 24, World Tuberculosis Day.
"According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the treatment of drug-susceptible tuberculosis is changing. 4 months of treatment as the first recommendation, or 6 months in selected cases, administered daily, in forms that allow the administration of several types of antibiotics in a single capsule. Today, the treatment of drug-susceptible tuberculosis involves at least 6 months of treatment with a maximum of 12 tablets, a minimum possible in our 10 tablets, administered daily in the first 2 months. As a pulmonologist, I believe that the management of tuberculosis is undergoing a change of vision, a paradigm shift," Mahler said.
She added that the new tuberculosis treatment essentially means modern, more effective, shorter duration and better tolerated therapeutic regimens and, therefore, also a better patient adherence, as it is known that in TB, patient adherence is essential.
"Considering the significance of today, when we talk about tuberculosis awareness at a social level, we must not forget the direct benefits that the 4-month regimen brings: the decrease in the number of days of paid sick leave 100%, by about 30%, because the disease heals faster. It means 30% more days of activity at work for people cured of tuberculosis: it means a significant saving coming from the reduction of the number of days for which the food allowance is provided," said the doctor.
In her opinion, all savings can be used for the purchase of recommended drugs, which increase the effectiveness of treatment, increase patients' adherence to treatment, prevent treatment failure and reduce the risk of selection of forms of drug-resistant tuberculosis.
"Beyond all this, for Romanians who go through tuberculosis there are dozens of days that are no longer lived in the disease, in stigma and in suffering, because tuberculosis is cured, and the new treatment regimens allow them to heal faster," said Mahler.
Comentează