Drug resistant TB, Symposium on December 21

Mangalore Today News Network

Manipal, Dec 20, 2016: Manipal McGill Center for Infectious Diseases (MAC ID) along with Dr TMA Pai endowment chairs in Tuberculosis Elimination, Translational Epidemiology and Implementation Research of Manipal University will hold half a day Symposium on Drug Resistant Tuberculosis at Manipal on December 21.

The deliberations will focus on newer diagnostics and treatment of Drug Resistant TB, nutritional implications in TB and protection of health care workers from TB.

Drug resistant TB is a serious and growing threat in India, especially in the urban areas such as Mumbai. Multidrug resistant TB (MDR TB) is caused by TB bacteria resistant to two of the most important first line drugs against TB, namely isoniazid and rifampicin. About 4.8 lakh people worldwide developed MDR-TB in 2015, with half of the global burden contributed by China, India and the Russian Federation.

Drug resistant TB occurs when patients fail to complete drug therapy, are irregular in their treatment, have relapse or newly acquire it from another person with drug resistant TB.