A Critical Analysis of Literature Associated with Adverse Drug Reactions Experienced by Tuberculosis Patients

Tuberculosis (TB) has been one of the most fatal diseases in the world, especially in the recent decades, with majority of its presence in India and other developing countries. The treatment of TB includes directly observed treatment (DOTS) therapy which comes with its efficacy and drug resistance issues, including high incidence of adverse drug reactions (ADRs), since a greater quantity of drugs given to the patients causes a higher rate of adverse effects.

This paper is a critique (critical analysis) that focuses on reviewing various research papers exploring ADRs associated with the management of TB across urban hospitals in India. Five research papers were analyzed, that aimed to identify the types and incidence of ADRs occurring during the treatment of TB and to evaluate the effectiveness of the pharmacovigilance system in reporting and managing ADRs in these settings. The studies were conducted for an average of nine months and consisted of about 100-200 HIV negative TB patients in the age group of 16 - 60 years with similar demographics. These patients were not MDR-TB positive and received both Category 1 & Category 2 DOTS therapy for controlling TB.

The factors contributing to ADRs were examined and ways to minimize their occurrence were explored.

Aim: The aim of this critical analysis is to help improve the safety and efficacy of TB treatment in urban hospitals in India and contribute to the development of better pharmacovigilance strategies, by performing a critical analysis of five research papers detailing studies conducted in TB patients of similar demographics in urban healthcare settings.