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Rh In 1992, CDC reported that (3):

According to the American Medical Association, about 70% of infectious tuberculosis cases occur among racial and ethnic minorities, and (4):

Difficulties have arisen in ensuring a continuing supply of antituberculosis drugs in the United States due to uncertain supplies of isoniazid and other drugs (2,5).

Recently, multiple-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has become a serious concern (4,6). Multiple-drug-resistant is defined as resistance to two or more primary drugs used in this country for the treatment of tuberculosis (currently isoniazid, rifampin, pyrazinamide, streptomycin, and ethambutol). In a recent survey in New York City, 33% of tuberculosis cases had organisms resistant to at least one drug, and 19% had organisms resistant to both isoniazid (INH+) and rifampin, the two most effective drugs available for treating tuberculosis. When organisms are resistant to both INH and rifampin, the course of treatment increases from 6 months to 18-24 months, and the cure rate decreases from about 95% to 60% or less.

Against this background of increasing numbers of tuberculosis cases and increasing numbers of multiple-drug-resistant cases, CDC has reported a serious new phenomenon: outbreaks