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Source: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-11-prevalence-drug-resistant-tuberculosis-west-africa.html
Prevalence of drug-resistant tuberculosis in West Africa higher than previously thought
November 2, 2016
Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) could become a serious public health threat in West Africa unless effective surveillance and control measures are implemented, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Medicine. Researchers from the West-African Network of Excellence for TB, AIDS and Malaria (WANETAM) found the prevalence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) to be unexpectedly high in eight West-African countries.
Professor Martin Antonio, Principal Investigator at the Medical Research Council Unit The Gambia (MRCG), who led WANETAM's TB-related activities, said: "To our surprise, we found that multidrug-resistant and pre-extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis strains are already widely circulating and that drug resistance is a much bigger problem in West Africa than previously anticipated. WHO estimates the prevalence of multidrug resistance in new and retreatment cases to be 2% and 17% respectively but we found that it is 6% and 35% respectively."...
Prevalence of drug-resistant tuberculosis in West Africa higher than previously thought
November 2, 2016
Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) could become a serious public health threat in West Africa unless effective surveillance and control measures are implemented, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Medicine. Researchers from the West-African Network of Excellence for TB, AIDS and Malaria (WANETAM) found the prevalence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) to be unexpectedly high in eight West-African countries.
Professor Martin Antonio, Principal Investigator at the Medical Research Council Unit The Gambia (MRCG), who led WANETAM's TB-related activities, said: "To our surprise, we found that multidrug-resistant and pre-extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis strains are already widely circulating and that drug resistance is a much bigger problem in West Africa than previously anticipated. WHO estimates the prevalence of multidrug resistance in new and retreatment cases to be 2% and 17% respectively but we found that it is 6% and 35% respectively."...