(BETA) News Briefs: Studies of Rifabutin to Prevent Tuberculosis


(BETA) News Briefs: Studies of Rifabutin to Prevent Tuberculosis

Bulletin of Experimental Treatments for AIDS, No. 26 September 1995
Ronald Baker, PhD

Rifabutin (Mycobutin) will be studied in a large international trial (2,000 participants) for its ability to prevent tuberculosis (TB) disease among HIV positive individuals who are also infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTb), but who do not have active TB. Infection with MTb is determined by a positive reaction to the PPD (purified protein derivative ), a skin test for TB. Three months of rifabutin therapy will be compared to 12 months treatment with the antibiotic isoniazid, the standard preventive therapy for TB.

A second study will test the effectiveness of rifabutin in preventing TB among injection drug users who are anergic. Anergic individuals do not respond to standard skin tests (e.g., the PPD skin test for TB), because they are immunosuppressed. As HIV disease progresses, latent TB infection may reactivate in HIV positive individuals to cause active disease.

Rifabutin (Mycobutin) is already FDA-approved for the prevention of Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) and has also been used as part of combination regimens to treat active TB. The drug is manufactured by Pharmacia, Inc., a subsidiary of Pharmacia AB in Sweden, one of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.


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Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeard in 1995. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

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