Rifabutin for treating pulmonary tuberculosis (Review)

Among current challenges in tuberculosis treatment are reducing the length of time that drugs must be taken to less than six months and finding ways to safely combine tuberculosis drugs with those used in the treatment of HIV infection. Rifabutin is a drug that has the potential to address these issues if substituted for rifampicin, a mainstay of current treatment. This review identified five trials involving 924 people, but none were of high quality. The review found no significant differences between rifabutin- and rifampicincontaining treatment in curing tuberculosis and preventing relapse, but higher doses of rifabutin might be associated with more adverse effects and there...