Epidemiology and patterns of drug resistance among tuberculosis patients in Northwestern Iran

Background: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has emerged as an important global health concern and is on the rise throughout the world. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the epidemiology and pattern of TB drug resistance. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 180 pulmonary TB patients from two Northwestern provinces of Iran were selected. The first and second line drug susceptibility testing was carried out using the 1% proportion method on the L phi wenstein-Jensen medium. Full demographic, environmental and clinical history was evaluated. Results: Prevalence of resistance to any TB drug was 13.8%. Eight (4.4%) patients had MDR-TB (2.4% in the province of East Azerbaijan and 9.3% in the province of Ardabil) and one patient had extensively drug-resistant TB. Patient resistance to both isoniazid and streptomycin was the most prevalent at a rate of 8.3%. Patients showed the least resistance to ethambutol (2.8%). There was a significant relationship between the previous history of TB drug treatment and TB drug resistance. Migrants from rural to urban areas were in high-risk groups for the occurrence of TB drug resistance. Conclusion: In our study, prevalence of MDR was less than the global average. It is essential to monitor the patients with previous history of TB treatment and migrants by rapid and accurate techniques in terms of drug-resistance odds.