Long-term survival of patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis according to treatment outcomes.

Survival times of 219 patients diagnosed with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis were calculated and treatment outcomes compared. Mean survival of 20 patients who failed to be cured was 109.8 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 87.4-132.1), shorter than that of 150 patients who were cured (140.4 months; 95% CI, 136.1-144.7; P < .01) and that of 28 patients classified as treatment completed (138.5 months; 95% CI, 131.0-146.1; P = .02). The results demonstrate that patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis with poor treatment outcomes live 9 years, on average.