New Rapid Tests for Drug-Resistant TB Proposed for Developing Countries

People in low-resource countries who have multidrug-resistant tubercolosis (MDR-TB) will get a faster diagnosis — in two days rather than the standard two to three months — and appropriate treatment due to two new initiatives unveiled by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Stop TB Partnership, UNITAID and the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics.

Over the next four years, the probe assays, as the tests are called, will be used in 16 countries.

Under the second initiative, the Global Drug Facility will boost the supply of drugs needed to treat MDR-TB in 54 countries, including those receiving the new diagnostic tests. The countries getting this assistance have met WHO's technical standards for managing MDR-TB and have treatment programs in place, the organizations said.