Zoonotic TB: Treatment and management

zTB is treated similarly to M. tuberculosis. In fact, healthcare providers might not know that a person has M. bovis instead of M. tuberculosis. M. bovis is usually resistant to one of the antibiotics, pyrazinamide, typically used to treat TB disease. However, resistance to just pyrazinamide does not usually cause problems with treatment, because TB disease is treated with a combination of several antibiotics. Latent infection without disease is not treated with pyrazinamide.

The principle of treatment for tuberculosis (other than confirmed Drug Resistant forms of TB) is to administer daily fixed dose combinations or loose drugs available as first – line anti-tuberculosis drugs (except Pyrazinamide) in appropriate weight bands and for second anti-tuberculosis drugs the DRTB committee should be consulted during pre-treatment evaluation.

Bovine TB is usually not treated in animals as the treatment for TB, which is the same as the treatment for TB in humans, takes too long and is uneconomic.