09 Nov

Post-Exposure Management of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Contacts: Evidence-Based Recommendations

The Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery–Dubai celebrated its inaugural symposium on Sunday, October 25, 2015 at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Academic Medical Center in Dubai Healthcare City. At the launch, the Center distributed a policy brief, “Post-Exposure Management of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Contacts: Evidence-Based Recommendations,” which was written by Sentinel Project members.

The principles and recommendations outlined in this policy brief were developed by a global panel of 51 tuberculosis practitioners from 33 cities in 19 countries who gathered at the Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery–Dubai on April 12 and 13, 2015. This global consultation provided a forum for TB practitioners to synthesize evidence and produce practical guidance for the management of children and adults who are household contacts of patients with DR-TB. Following the meetings and a review of published and unpublished evidence, the panel arrived at a set of seven principles summarized in this policy brief, along with the process employed to produce them.

Download “Post-Exposure Management of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Contacts: Evidence-Based Recommendations” as a PDF here.

Download the full meeting proceedings “Global Consultation on Best Practices in the Delivery of Preventive Therapy for Households Exposed to Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis” as a PDF here.

09 Nov

SAVE THE DATE – Pediatric DR-TB Symposia, Poster Sessions and More at the 46th Union World Conference on Lung Health

From December 2nd through 6th, 2015, TB researchers, practitioners, caregivers and advocates from around the world will be convening in Cape Town, South Africa for the 46th annual Union World Conference on Lung Health. Throughout the conference, experts in pediatric drug-resistant TB – including several Sentinel Project members and partners – will be hosting symposia, poster discussion sessions, oral abstract sessions, post-graduate courses and “Meet the Expert” sessions to discuss new developments in pediatric DR-TB.

We are excited to announce a symposium on Friday, December 4th entitled, “Research is needed to increase children’s access to drug-resistant TB care,” where several Sentinel Project members and colleagues will advocate for improvements in pediatric DR-TB research. For more information on this event, read our blog post here.

In addition to this symposium, Sentinel Project network members are conducting a post graduate course entitled “Best practices in the management of the second-line injectable drugs in children with multidrug-resistant TB,” scheduled from 09:00-16:00 on in Room MR 1.41 on Wednesday, December 2, 2015 during the conference. Click here to access the agenda for this event and see here for more information on pediatric DR-TB events.

We look forward to many productive discussions in Cape Town this December and hope to see many of you there!

For more information about the 46th annual Union World Conference on Lung Health, please visit their website: http://capetown.worldlunghealth.org/.

09 Nov

SAVE THE DATE – Sentinel Project Symposium at 46th Union World Conference, December 4th

On Friday, December 4, 2015, the Sentinel Project will be hosting a symposium entitled, “Research is Needed to Increase Children’s Access to Drug-Resistant TB Care,” at the 46th Union World Conference on Lung Health in Cape Town, South Africa. This event will bring together pediatric DR-TB researchers, caregivers and advocates to discuss the current needs and advances in research for children with drug-resistant TB.

Presentation topics will include research priorities for pediatric DR-TB, the need for child-focused program targets, pediatric DR-TB clinical trials, opportunities for and barriers to development of pediatric second-line drug formulations, and advocacy strategies for pediatric DR-TB research.

The Symposium will be held from 13:30 to 15:00 in Room MR 2.44-2.46 on Friday, December 4, 2015 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. We hope to see you there!

For more information on the event, see the agenda here or the advertisement for the event here.

For more information about the 46th Union World Conference on Lung Health, visit the conference website here.

09 Dec

Dismantling the invisibility trap for children with drug-resistant tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne infectious disease that is both preventable and curable, yet it kills more than a million people every year. Children are highly vulnerable, but often invisible casualties. Drug-resistant forms of TB are on the rise globally, and children are as vulnerable as adult but less likely to be counted as cases of drug-resistant disease if they become sick. Four factors make children with drug-resistant TB ‘invisible’: first, the nature of the disease in children; second, deficiencies in existing diagnostic tools; third, overreliance on these tools; and fourth, our collective failure to deploy one effective tool for finding and treating children – contact investigation. Provisional annual targets, focused on children exposed at home to multidrug-resistant TB, to be updated every year, constitute a framework to focus attention and collective actions at the community, national and global levels. The targets tell us the number of: (i) children who require complete evaluation for TB disease and infection; (ii) children who require treatment for TB disease; and (iii) children who would benefit from preventive therapy.

Download full text here –  A targets framework: Dismantling the invisibility trap for children with drug-resistant tuberculosis

Full Citation:
Becerra MC, Swaminathan S. Dismantling the invisibility trap for children with drug-resistant tuberculosis. Journal of Public Health Policy (2014) 35, 425-454, published online 11 September 2014. doi:10.1057/jphp.2014.35

22 Oct

What’s in a number? Two recent reports on pediatric TB cases

This webinar recorded on October 09, 2014 reviews the following:

  • A 2014 report estimating global childhood TB disease incidence, including multidrug-resistant TB
  • A 2014 report estimating childhood TB infection and disease in high TB-burden countries
  • Practical implications for clinicians and other child health advocates

View a recording of the webinar here.

View a PDF version of the slides here.

10 Jul

Burden of childhood tuberculosis in 22 high-burden countries: a mathematical modeling study

Members of the Sentinel Project Network have published a paper titled, “Burden of childhood tuberculosis in 22 high-burden countries: a mathematical modelling study.” The paper was published in early online publication in the The Lancet Global Health on July 9, 2014. The aim of this paper is to estimate the incidence of infection and disease in children, the prevalence of infection, and household exposure in the 22 countries with a high burden of disease.

You can access an article highlighting the paper here.

Full Reference: Burden of childhood tuberculosis in 22 high-burden countries: a mathematical modelling study Dr Peter J Dodd PhD,Elizabeth Gardiner MSc,Renia Coghlan MPH,James A Seddon PhD The Lancet Global Health – 9 July 2014  DOI: 10.1016/S2214-109X(14)70245-1

21 Jun

MDR-TB weight-based dosing chart for children

This dosing chart provides recommendations for the acceptable doses of second-line TB drugs for children. This chart, available here, was developed by a team of experts in November 2013 based on published data as well as new PK data on the fluoroquinolones and aminoglycosides. The doses are based on weight bands and use tablet sizes currently available in most TB programs. Because children being treat for DR-TB often gain weight quickly, it is recommended that dose adjustments be considered on a regular basis (i.e. monthly).

For important disclaimers on the use of this dosing chart, please refer to the disclaimer section available in the Sentinel Project’s “Management of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Children: A Field Guide“