The Antituberculosis Efficacy of Rifampin in 136 Patients

¹ National Jewish Hospital and Research Center, Denver

Table 9 summarizes the results. A total of 136 patients was studied. One hundred and twelve were infected with M tuberculosis. Five of these patients had drug susceptible organisms, and all were successfully treated with rifampin. The remaining 107 patients had drug resistant disease and 103 received definitive therapy. Eighty-four patients received rifampin at least one effective antituberculosis drug: 73 (87 percent) were successfully treated; and 11 (13 percent) failed to show improvement. Of the 19 patients who received rifampin without an effective companion drug, 10 (53 percent) were successfully treated; and 9 (47 percent) failed to respond.

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Twenty-four patients with atypical mycobacterial disease received rifampin-containing drug regimens. Twelve patients with M kansasii infections were successfully treated, and the results were indeterminate in one. Only three of 11 patients with Group 3 infections were successfully treated.

The results of this study indicates that rifampin is a safe and very effective antituberculosis drug. Its proper use, however, includes the fact that, like all antituberculosis drugs, rifampin as a single drug cannot be expected to control cavitary pulmonary disease with an acceptable rate of success. It should always be used in combination with one or more other effective drugs if at all possible. Rifampin-containing regimens were highly successful in treating infections due to M kansasii. Results with Group 3 infections were poor.

The development of rifampin is without a doubt a major advance in the treatment of tuberculosis. Its importance in the retreatment of patients with drug resistant infection is extraordinary. Because of this marked efficacy, it is imperative that the drug be properly used so that emerging resistance will be avoided.