Drug resistance pattern and associated risk factors of tuberculosis patients in the central province of Iran.

Background: One of the fundamental issues of infectious disease treatment is drug resistance. The aim of the present study was to investigate the first-line anti-tuberculosis drug resistance rates and determine the risk factors related to multidrug resistant mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Methods: From March 2011 to September 2012, mycobacterial strains were collected from one hundred fifteen diagnosed smear positive patients in the central province of Iran and tested for drug susceptible against ethambutol, rifampicin, isoniazid and streptomycin and the risk factors influencing the development of drug resistance were determined.