RISING TREND OF MULTI DRUG RESISTANT TUBERCULOSIS: A THREAT TO COMMUNITY

Background: to determine the frequency and resistance pattern of mycobacterium tuberculosis in our settings. methods: this study was carried out in department of microbiology, armed forces institute of pathology rawalpindi, from january 2007 through december 2009. a total of 4159 specimens were received during the three years study period. all specimens were cultured on conventional lj medium, bactec 460 system and fully automated mgit 960 system. sensitivity testing was performed on bactec 460 and mgit 960 system. results: most of the specimens were received from hospitalized patients. out of total 4159 specimens, 693 were culture positive and out of them 262 were multi drug resistant (mdr). percentage of mdr isolates in 2007 till 2009 were 33, 42.1 and 40.4% respectively in afip. maximum number of mdr isolates was recovered in 2008. conclusion: the rising pattern of mdr tuberculosis is of great concern. there is an urgent need for the early diagnosis, drug susceptibility testing and isolation of patients with mdr tuberculosis