Drug-resistant TB cases notification mandatory in Maharashtra

• Even as the Centre refused to acknowledge the emergence of totally drug resistant (TDR) TB cases, the Maharashtra government has decided to introduce mandatory notification of all multi drug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis cases. Non-compliance of this notification will attract punishment. The Maharashtra government will also adopt these cases and offer them free treatment.
• All public and private sector laboratories will have to report any such suspected drug resistant cases, re-test them from a Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) accredited laboratory and treat all such confirmed drug resistant TB cases as per the RNTCP guidelines.
• A statement issued by the Central team that visited Mumbai following reporting of 12 TDR TB cases — three of whom have since died — said that the cases has been “erroneously” labelled as TDR-TB and cases reported by Hinduja Hospital fall only within the category of Extensively Drug Resistant TB (XDR TB) based on standard WHO definitions.
• Diagnosis of XDR TB must be based on microbiological confirmation from the accredited national reference laboratories namely National Institute of Research in TB in Chennai, National TB Institute in Bangalore and LRS Institute of TB and Respiratory Diseases in New Delhi.