A comparative study of daily and twice-weekly continuation regimens of tuberculosis chemotherapy, including a comparison of two durations of sanatorium treatment. 1. First report: the results at 12 months.

The results of a controlled clinical trial of tuberculosis chemotherapeutic regimens, carried out with the co-operation of all 7 tuberculosis hospitals and 27 of the 30 chest clinics of the Central Bohemian region and 6 of the 10 chest clinics of Prague, are presented.Patients in whom pulmonary tuberculosis had been newly diagnosed and confirmed bacteriologically were given standard triple-drug chemotherapy with streptomycin, PAS, and isoniazid for 3 months. They were then allocated at random either to standard daily continuation chemotherapy with isoniazid plus PAS or to fully supervised treatment with streptomycin and high dosage isoniazid, given twice weekly. After 1 year the results of both regimens were highly satisfactory, but the intermittent regimen-the organization of which is described here in detail-also offered administrative advantages to the treatment services. Furthermore, it was more acceptable to the patients. A subsidiary comparison between two durations of sanatorium treatment-3 months and 6 months-failed to demonstrate any benefit from the longer period.

RCT Entities:   Population Interventions Outcomes