Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2007. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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San Francisco Examiner - September 19, 2007
Karl B. Hille, khille@baltimoreexaminer.com
Tuberculosis experts at Johns Hopkins and in Brazil found evidence that substituting the antibiotic moxifloxacin for one of the drugs used to treat the highly contagious lung disease could dramatically improve treatment.
"This is the most compelling evidence in nearly 25 years that a novel antibiotic drug combination works better than the current gold standard at curing active TB infection," said Dr. Richard E. Chaisson, director of Johns Hopkins' Center for Tuberculosis Research. Chaisson presented his team's findings at the 47th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in Chicago Tuesday.
Their combination of antibiotics increased the cure rate after just two months of therapy by 17 percent to 85 percent. Moxifloxacin replaced an older antibiotic, ethambutol, but it is not currently approved for TB.
"Beyond the obvious value of healing patients more quickly, a shorter treatment time could also cut down on transmission of the disease to others and the spread of drug resistant strains", Chaisson said.
Tuberculosis is spread by coughing and sneezing, according to the World Health Organization. Each year about 1.6 million people die from the curable disease, particularly in third world countries and among HIV/AIDS populations.
Symptoms include sickness, weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats. TB of the lungs also causes coughing, chest pain, and coughing up blood, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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