Abstract:
Background: Drug-resistant TB continues to be a public health threat. In Ethiopia even
though MDR-TB treatment in ambulatory set up like Bule Hora General Hospital was
started in 2014, the treatment outcome was not assessed in many centers.
Objective: To assess the Multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patient treatment
outcomes and associated factors at Bule Hora General Hospital, south Ethiopia.
Methods: Facility based retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at Bule Hora
General Hospital involving patients treated during a period of 01 January 2014 to 31
December 2021. Summary statistics such as frequency, mean and percentage were
computed and odds ratio calculated. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression
were conducted to determine factors associated with poor drug resistant tuberculosis
treatment outcomes
Result: Total of 128 participants were involved in the study; the mean age was 34.95
years (±15). Almost half of them, 63 (49.2%) had prior history of TB treatment, and 25
patients (19.5%) had history of drug interruption. Thirty-nine (30.5%) had HIV
infection. Drug sensitivity test revealed 3 (2.3%) participants had resistance to
rifampicin (RIF), isoniazid (INH), ethambutol (EMB), and streptomycin(SM). All
patients received standardized regimens (long- and short-terms standardized regimens),
and 74 (57.8%) patients experienced drug adverse effects. Ninety-one (71.1%)
participants had favourable outcome defined as cured, 59 (46.09%) and treatment
completed, 32 (25%). HIV co- infection (aOR 0.410, 95% CI 0.177-0.973), presence of
comorbid medical conditions (aOR 0.206, 95% CI 0.067-0.632), and poor treatment
adherence (aOR 0.367 (0.016-8.344) were associated with unfavourable treatment
outcome.
Conclusion: The new ambulatory program to manage MDR TB in Bule Hora showed a
favourable outcome (71.1%). The outcome of MDR-TB treatment was poor in patients
with HIV seropositivity, comorbidities, and a history of drug discontinuation. So this
ambulatory program needs to be expanded more in Ethiopia to reduce delay of
treatment and patient overload in limited centres.
