Serial Audiometry’s Inclusion; A Dire Need to Manage MDR/XDR-TB Patients in Order to Reduce the Emergence of Ototoxicity

Abstract

The global burden of tuberculosis has increased a lot due to the emergence of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extremely drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) cases. The current situation necessitates the need of aggressive therapy for longer duration. The use of aminoglycosides and polypeptide antibiotics as category I&II regimen have shown significant positive outcome for the management. Besides the beneficial effects, these drugs harbors serious side effects like the permanent hearing loss and the reversible renal damage. Therefore, there is a dire need of including serial audiometries amongst protocols for the patients being managed by aminoglycosides in order to minimize the emergence of permanent hearing loss.