Extract
We read with great interest the paper by Falzon et al. [1], which reported that gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin have been recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for both longer and shortened regimens in the treatment of rifampicin-resistant (RR) and multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis (TB). Gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin belong to the latest generation of fluoroquinolones that have comparable early bactericidal and sterilising activity in the treatment of TB. Gatifloxacin has been used in the treatment of bacterial infections and MDR-TB [2]. Gatifloxacin was also used in a clinical trial (OFLOTUB) comparing a 4-month gatifloxacin-based regimen with the standard 6-month regimen for the treatment of rifampicin-susceptible pulmonary TB [3]. The gatifloxacin-based shortened treatment was highly effective, achieving >84% treatment success among MDR-TB patients in Bangladesh, Cameroon and Niger [2].
Abstract
Moxifloxacin may not be a valid alternative to gatifloxacin in the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis http://ow.ly/uLby30hBItG
Footnotes
Conflict of interest: None declared.
- Received November 11, 2017.
- Accepted December 4, 2017.
- Copyright ©ERS 2018