Abstract:
Background: The United Republic of Tanzania is one of the 22 high M. tuberculosis burden
countries. Data collected between 2002 and 2007 indicate that the global prevalence of drugresistant
M. tuberculosis including MDR vary greatly. The varied drug-resistance patterns make
continuous surveillance of drug resistance an essential component of tuberculosis control program.
Findings: M. tuberculosis isolates were obtained from consenting adult tuberculosis patients
involved in a placebo-controlled study to evaluate the efficacy of multivitamin supplements on
response to anti-Tb treatment in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was
done on four antimicrobial agents namely streptomycin, isoniazid, ethambutol and rifampicin. HIV
testing and CD4+ T lymphocytes enumeration were also done. A total of 280 M. tuberculosis
isolates from 191 (68%) males and 89 (32%) female patients with no previous history of antituberculosis
treatment exceeding 4 weeks in the previous 12 months were tested. Among these,
133 (47%) patients were HIV seropositive. Fourteen (5.0%) isolates were resistant to any of the
anti-tuberculosis drugs. The prevalence of primary resistance was 5.0%, 0.7%, 0.4% and 0% for
isoniazid, streptomycin, rifampicin and ethambutol respectively. One isolate (0.4%) was MDR, with
resistance to isoniazid, streptomycin and rifampicin.
Conclusion: M. Tb primary resistance rate in a selected population in Dar es Salaam Tanzania is
low and efforts should be undertaken to support the Tuberculosis program.
