World Health Organization recommendations for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: should different standards be applied?

Abstract

The World Health Organization uses a Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation process to make recommendations for treating multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Even with this standardized approach, there have been discrepancies between recommendations for newer drugs such as bedaquiline and delamanid and the shorter regimen. This may be because newer drugs are novel chemical entities and may merit closer scrutiny. Here, we explore the problematic nature of this supposition, arguing that although the newer drugs have been used in fewer individuals, they may have more robust efficacy and safety data than many of the second-line drugs used in the shorter regimen.