Modern approaches to pharmacotherapy of tuberculosis infection in children

Abstract

Anti-TB drugs for children: Aetiotropic therapy is used for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) in children, as well as in adult patients. Anti-tuberculosis drugs (anti-TB drugs) are divided into 3 lines, taking into account drug sensitivity in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MBT). First-line anti-TBdrugs (basic) are used to treat TB caused by drug-susceptible MBT. Second- and third-line (reserve) drugs are recommended for the treatment of MBT-induced multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) TB, respectively.

Stages and regimens to treat tuberculosis: Chemotherapy of tuberculosis in children is carried out in 2 stages (intensive treatment and continuation of treatment) and includes 5 regimens. Each regimen assumes a certain combination of anti-TB drugs, indicating the duration and frequency of their administration. The final chemotherapy regimen is chosen only according to the results of determining the drug sensitivity. To improve the TB epidemic among children, it is important to improve the regimens for the use of anti-TB drugs. The effectiveness of anti-tuberculosis pharmacotherapy is largely determined by the MBT sensitivity and the rational choice of the chemotherapy regimen. The wrong choice of a chemotherapy regimen or its violation threatens to reduce the effectiveness of pharmacotherapy and expand the spectrum of resistance of the pathogen. The development of fixed-dose combination anti-TB drugs and special dosage forms for children will improve the quality of chemotherapy and adherence to treatment. Pharmacoeconomic studies are needed to increase the effectiveness of drug pharmacotherapy for tuberculosis infection in children and to optimize the costs of its implementation.