GENEVA, Sept 5, 2006 (AFP) - The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday expressed concern about an increase in cases of tuberculosis resistant to antibiotics, calling for reinforced measures to avoid the spread of deadly strains of the disease.
A recent study concerned an ultra-resistant (UR) form of tuberculosis "which leaves patients (including many people living with HIV) virtually untreatable using currently available anti-TB drugs", the WHO said in a statement.
UR tuberculosis is resistant to at least three of the six categories of medicine prescribed when a patient fails to react to initial tuberculosis antibiotics.
A meeting of experts, on September 7 and 8 in Johannesburg, South Africa, is due to evaluate possible measures to deal with the problem.
Ultra-resistant strains of tuberculosis occur most frequently in former Soviet countries and Asia, and are on the rise elsewhere, particularly in Africa.
"Given the underlying HIV epidemic, drug-resistant TB could have a severe impact on mortality in Africa and requires urgent preventative action," the statement said.
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