Treatment outcomes for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis under DOTS-Plus:a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies

摘要

Background:Anti-tuberculosis drug resistance is a major public health problem that threatens the progress made in tuberculosis care and control worldwide.Treatment success rates of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis(MDR-TB)is a key issue that cannot be ignored.There is a paucity of evidence that assessed studies on the treatment of MDR-TB,which focus on the effectiveness of the directly observed treatment,short-course(DOTS)-Plus program.Therefore,it is crucial to assess and summarize the overall treatment outcomes for MDR-TB patients enrolled in the DOTS-Plus program in recent years.The purpose of this study was to thus assess and summarize the available evidence for MDR-TB treatment outcomes under DOTS-Plus.Methods:A systematic review and meta-analysis of published literature was conducted.Original studies were identified using the databases MEDLINE®/PubMed®,Hinari,and Google Scholar.Heterogeneity across studies was assessed using the Cochran’s Q test and I2 statistic.Pooled estimates of treatment outcomes were computed using the random effect model.Results:Based on the 14 observational studies included in the meta-analysis,it was determined that 5047 patients reported treatment outcomes.Of these,the pooled prevalence,63.5%(95%CI:58.4-68.5%)successfully completed full treatment(cured or treatment completed)with a pooled cure rate of 55.6%,whereas 12.6%(95%CI:9.0-16.2%)of the patients died,14.2%(95%CI:11.6-16.8%)defaulted from therapy,and 7.6%(95%CI:5.6-9.7%)failed therapy.Overall 35.4%(95%CI:30-40.8%)of patients had unsuccessful treatment outcomes.An unsatisfactorily high percentage 43%(95%CI:32-54%)of unsuccessful treatment outcomes was observed among patients who were enrolled in standardized treatment regimens.Conclusion:This study revealed that patients with MDR-TB exhibited a very low treatment success rate compared to the World Health Organization 2015 target of at least 75 to 90%.The high default rate observed by conducting this literature review could possibly explain the spread of the MDR-TB strain in various populations.A better treatment success rate was observed among patients in individualized treatment regimens than in standardized ones.Conducting further individual-based meta-analysis is recommended to identify potential factors for defaulting treatment using large-scale and multi-center studies.