Findings from South Africa's BEAT Tuberculosis study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, show a new six-month regimen cures 90 percent of drug-resistant TB cases.
The clinical study began in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape to test the safety and effectiveness of a shortened treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis.
Dr Francesca Conradie of the Clinical Health Research Unit at Wits University described the change. She said previous regimens lasted 18 months with daily injections for the first six months, cured only half the patients, and caused side effects such as hearing loss, nausea and vomiting.
The new approach lasts six months and achieves a 90 percent cure rate, according to the study results released this week.