Treatment Outcomes Definitions
Treatment outcome applicable to short and long regimens are defined in the table below [9] . Treatment Outcome Definition Cured - A pulmonary patient with bacteriologically confirmed DR-TB at the beginning of treatment who completed treatment as recommended by the national policy, with evidence of bacteriological response and no evidence of failure (clinical deterioration). - Bacteriol
Treatment outcome applicable to short and long regimens are defined in the table below [9].
| Treatment Outcome | Definition |
| Cured |
- A pulmonary patient with bacteriologically confirmed DR-TB at the beginning of treatment who completed treatment as recommended by the national policy, with evidence of bacteriological response and no evidence of failure (clinical deterioration). TB smear microscopy and cultures must be taken at the beginning of treatment(baseline), 2 weeks later, 4 weeks later and monthly thereafter. |
| Treatment completed | - A patient who has TB culture converted. - Has two negative TB cultures during treatment. - Who completed treatment as recommended by the national policy - No evidence of clinical deterioration. |
| Treatment success | - The sum of treatment cured and completed. |
| Loss to Follow Up | A patient who has interrupted their treatment for: - ≥ 2 consecutive months - Any reason without medical approval |
| Treatment Failure |
- A patient whose treatment regimen needed to be terminated or permanently changed to a new regimen or treatment strategy (change of 2 or more drugs). When someone is started on a shorter regimen and later it is picked up on the baseline sample that they had a condition that qualified them to be on the longer regimen, the patient may not be captured as a failure. They should be de-registered from the shorter regimen and registered in the new group. |
| Moved | - Referred from one facility to another facility within the same district to continue treatment. This is not an outcome but serves to match patient moving within the district in order to prevent double counting. - The treatment outcome is reported by the facility where the patient is newly registered |
| Transferred Out | - Referred from one facility to another reporting and recording facility in another district, province or country to continue treatment. - The treatment outcome is reported by the facility where the patient is newly registered |
| Died | A patient who dies for any reason during treatment |
| Still on treatment | Still on treatment after prescribed period |
| Not Evaluated | A patient recorded in the register and who does not have the necessary recorded data to enable classification of any outcome |
National Department of Health Clinical Management of Rifampicin-Resistant Tuberculosis, September 2023
Treatment Outcome Definitions