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India to Roll Out New Treatment Regimen for Drug-Resistant TB
Context:
India is set to introduce the BPaL (bedaquiline, pretomanid, and linezolid) regimen for all multi/extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis patients, with training for this initiative starting this month.
More on News:
- This is a significant step in India’s fight against multi/extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (M/XDR-TB).
- The BPaL regimen has shown promising results in countries like Pakistan, South Africa, and Ukraine.
Key Highlights:
- Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT): NAAT is a molecular test that detects the DNA of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in respiratory samples.
- The BPaL regimen is priced at US$426 (US$130 for bedaquiline, US$238 for pretomanid, US$31 for linezolid, and US$27 for moxifloxacin).
- This regimen is expected to replace longer and less effective treatments with a more effective, safer, and shorter treatment course.
- India’s treatment success rates are currently 56% for MDR/RR-TB cases and 48% for XDR-TB cases.
- A study published last month found that the BPaL and BPaLM (BPaL + moxifloxacin) regimens lead to significant cost savings. Studies estimate that adopting this regimen could save $740 million globally annually. India treats a third of the world’s MDR/RR-TB cases, which could mean nearly $250 million in savings annually for our country.
WHO Recommendations and Progress in India:
- The World Health Organization recommended the six-month BPaL and BPaLM regimens in 2022 as effective treatment options for most drug-resistant TB cases.
- According to WHO’s Global TB Report 2023, India has improved its TB case detection and treatment coverage to 80% of estimated cases, a 19% increase over the previous year.
- The estimated number of drug-resistant TB cases in India has decreased by 21% from 1.4 lakh in 2015 to 1.1 lakh in 2022.
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The BPaL Regimen
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